Municipal Environment & Tourism Department
Tel: 011 456 0112
Fax: 011 456 0114
Website: www.ekurhuleni.co.za
(Including Kwa-Thema)
The town was proclaimed in 1904 after coal had been discovered in the area. Six coal mines were soon opened, but the coal proved to be of inferior quality, prone to spontaneous combustion. The discovery of gold saved the town, which until then consisted of a few corrugated-iron cottages, some general stores and small hotels. Surrounded by eight important gold mines Springs was, for a time, the largest single gold-producing area in the world. An interesting result of the gold discovery was the indelible mark that the inflow of foreign labour from such places as Wales and China left on the city and its people. When mining operations eventually declined, the town concentrated on industrial development and today it is one of the region's industrial giants.
