The Jewish Traveler:
Out of Africa

History:
Johannesburg, City of Gold, was a happening that defied logic and history to take its place among the great cities of the world. When gold was discovered in 1886, fortune seekers streamed in from far and wide. The perplexed Paul Kruger, president of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, did not really know what to make of it. His government saw the craze literally as a flash in the pan that would blow over in a couple of months and leave the rural atmosphere of the Boer Republic intact.

But to accommodate the newcomers, or outlanders as they were called, a triangular piece of rocky government land which nobody else really wanted was allocated for the purpose. The xenophobic Transvaalers, as the white population was called, mostly from Dutch and French Huguenot stock with Afrikaans as their native language, just wished these strange people would disappear.

Yet when the charismatic Kruger saw Johannesburg wasn’t going to disappear, he realized there was money to be made for his cash-strapped republic, and so a central business district was laid out with blocks rather small and streets rather narrow.

There was a practical reason for this town planning: The smaller the blocks, the more corner stands there could be, each with a tavern or drinking house and that, in turn, meant money for the coffers.

To put some order into the chaos, surveyors were commissioned to measure this piece of land some 6,000 feet above sea level, situated on the divide between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, with water on one side running off to the Indian Ocean and on the other side to the Atlantic. The Witwatersrand, as the region is known, means ridge of white waters.

One surveyor started from what today is the high-rise (and rather rundown) suburb of Hillbrow, while the other worked from the central business district side. Measuring was done by means of ox chains. So far so good, except that the streets never lined up because the chains weren’t the same length. Neither of the surveyors was prepared to budge, so the streets were linked by means of quaint little doglegs—still an odd feature of the city today.

In the meantime, people kept streaming into Johannesburg. Of course there were Jews aplenty among them. Soon many of them ran flourishing businesses, while others peddled their wares deep into the hinterland. They came largely from Eastern Europe, mainly Lithuania, between 1886 and 1914; from Germany in the 1930’s; and in the late 1970’s onward from Zimbabwe, the former Rhodesia. Kruger had a good relationship with the Jews, seen by many pious Boers as “The People of the Book.”

As the town of Johannesburg grew, so did new Jewish organizations. One of these was the Jewish Helping Hand and Burial Society (the hevra kaddisha), formed in 1887 to bury the first Jew to die in the Golden City. It soon developed into a social and economic force, in particular in providing aid to the needy. In 1890, the first Jewish school opened.

A special phenomenon was the growth of the landsleit societies whose members derived from the same East European shtetls, or villages; the settlers who had established themselves were eager to offer encouragement and financial help to those who followed. Many of these societies continue to operate today.

Community:
In 1886, Johannesburg’s first year, there were about 100 Jews; within two years, there were 2,000 and within four years two major synagogues had been built. By 1910 nearly 40,000 had settled in South Africa, most of them in and around Johannesburg. They also lived in the suburbs of Doornfontein, Fordsburg, Mayfair, Jeppestown and the city center.

By the 60’s and 70’s there were some 140,000 Jews in the country, with the majority still drawn to Johannesburg and its environs. Today there are some 80,000, with about 55,000 in Johannesburg. The community is distinctive in its high level of observance. Some 90 percent are Orthodox; the remainder are mostly Progressive (similar to Reform).

Besides an array of magnificent shuls, there are also many shteiblach, small informal places of prayer, all over northern Johannesburg. Active youth organizations are present on the campuses of all tertiary institutions, with close links to similar organizations abroad and in Israel.

The community has a reputation as one of the most Zionist in the world. It has a low assimilation rate with intermarriage at under 10 percent. A major reason for the strong sense of belonging and camaraderie is the excellent day school system, which teaches more than 80 percent of Jewish youth.

Because of demographic changes—due to the decay of the central business district and rampant crime—the Jews, along with other residents, migrated away from the area. Current Jewish neighborhoods are mainly in the northern and northeastern parts of Johannesburg in suburbs such as Sandton, Glenhazel, Highlands North, Fairmount and Sandringham, with pockets in the suburbs of Emmarentia, Greenside and Victory Park. In the last 20 years, Jewish families have moved to northern suburbs such as Sydenham, Dunkeld, Wendywood and Gallo Manor. In places such as Doornfontein, there are still Jewish stores—although many are now merely historic façades with the hustle and bustle long gone.

It is noteworthy that in the 50’s when a young black law-school graduate by the name of Nelson Mandela could not find a firm where he could do his internship, it was a Jewish firm that took him in and nurtured him. He never forgot that, and on his release after 27 years in prison, he immediately made contact with his old benefactors.

Mandela has often paid tribute to the Jewish role in the struggle for a democratic South Africa. His successor, Thabo Mbeki, was keynote speaker in 1999 at the South African Jewish Board of Deputies’ biennial conference.

Despite the warm relations between the African National Congress government and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat—a legacy from the days of struggle when Arab states supported the ANC—Jews today have never been freer and safer, with many of them members of the ANC.

Sights:
Some old synagogues in and around the central business district are magnificent pieces of architecture, such as the Wolmarans Street shul (Wolmarans Street in Joubert Park) and the Mooi Street shul in town. They are no longer in use and the latter is a historic monument, although it is in the central business district and has been badly vandalized.

Another landmark is the Lions shul (120 Siemert Road, Doornfontein; telephone 27-11-407-7645) with two cast-iron lions painted black guarding the entrance. The intention is to start a museum in the splendid old building. The only museum is in the Beyachad complex at 2 Elray Street in Raedene (645-2500), where all the Jewish communal services are housed.

The old Jeppestown shul on Browning Street battled in vain to remain open but recently had to close—two years short of its centenary. The Hasidic shul at the corner of Yeo and Harrow Roads in Yeoville (649-9919) near the central business district struggles to survive because the suburb has undergone a drastic change and crime has become a huge problem.

Great Park Synagogue (Glenhove Road corner of Fourth Street in Houghton; 728-8152) is a magnificent complex of buildings. It includes a community center named after the present chief rabbi, Cyril Harris, and has already become a focal point for Johannesburg Jewry. Beth Hamedrash Hagadol Sandton on Longdon Road in Morningside (883-4210) is another vibrant place of worship. Built in an affluent northern suburb, it is thriving. The active South African Jewish Arts and Culture Trust is situated in Johannesburg.

The home of diamond magnate Barney Barnato is now a high school for girls in the suburb of Berea, while the Parktown house of Sir Lionel Phillips, another prominent Jewish millionaire, became the Arcadia Home for Jewish orphans in 1921 (22 Oxford Road; 646-6177). This beautiful building has now been sold—there are no longer many Jewish orphans—but it has been declared a national monument and may still be visited.

General Sights:
A visit to Gold Reef City, developed by Jewish twins Abe and Solly Krok, about five minutes from the central business district, is a must to get the feel of early Johannesburg. Victorian in design, it transports you back to the beginnings of Egoli (City of Gold), as many black residents affectionately call Johannesburg. A mine shaft is situated in the park opposite the main entrance, and visitors can explore its underground passages. There are casino complexes with top-of-the-line restaurants, boutiques and specialty shops. Take the M1 South highway to the Booysens off ramp and bear right. Cross over the first set of traffic lights and turn right at the next light.
Johannesburg is known for an abundance of designer shopping malls—such as Sandton City, Hyde Park, Cresta, Westgate and Eastgate, the latter close to Johannesburg International Airport.

Side Trips:
Although Johannesburg is situated on what is called the highveld—because it is so high above sea level—day trips will transport the traveler to bushveld scenes with an abundance of wildlife in their natural state.

Two lion parks are located just outside the city where visitors can watch the King of the Wild. One is on the West Rand about 18 miles away; take Onntdekkers Road through to Krugersdorp. The other park is about 18 miles away to the north of Johannesburg near Lanseria Airport.

The botanical gardens west of the city in Emmarentia teems with bird life and is home to a breeding pair of magnificent black eagles. Nature trails that start about nine miles from central Johannesburg stretch for some 60 miles to the town of Heidelberg. Indigenous flora and fauna and only small animals can be seen.

Some 40 miles south of the city, nature trails crisscross pristine countryside, leading to the Suikerbosrand (ridge of sugar bushes). To the northwest, about 40 minutes’ drive from Johannesburg, is the Hartbeespoort Dam, an important water source but also a popular recreational area. Here one is already in the bushveld, with its much warmer climate. Call the Gauteng Tourism Board (327-2000) for directions.

Just over an hour’s drive from Johannesburg is a breathtaking exercise in fantasy, the Lost City (014-557-3111). Brainchild of Jewish entrepreneur Sol Kerzner, it is comprised of luxurious hotel facilities, man-made beaches, swimming pools and a host of sports facilities.

A stone’s-throw away from Kerzner’s empire is the Pilanesberg Game Reserve and chalets (014-555-5355), where the visitor can see the pride of Africa in their wild state—lions, cheetahs, leopards, elephants—and an abundance of other types of game and exotic bird life.

Personalities:
One of the earliest rabbis to minister in Johannesburg was Romanian-born and American-trained Joseph Herman Hertz. He lived in the city from 1898 until 1903, when he left for England where he became chief rabbi of the British Empire. He is famous for the Hertz translation and commentary on the Bible.

The founders and developers of South Africa’s rich diamond and gold-mining industries included men like Barney Barnato, Isaac Lewis, Alfred Beit, the Joel brothers and the Oppenheimers. The Witwatersrand Goldfields Jewish Association was formed in 1887 under the leadership of Emanuel Mendelsohn. Under his auspices, the first synagogue was erected on Fox Street; it has long since been demolished. He was also part-owner and editor of the Standard and Diggers News.

For years, Helen Suzman was a lone liberal voice in Parliament, representing the Progressive Party and mercilessly bullied by an extremely chauvinistic National Party government. Now in her eighties and long retired, she sees her ideals vindicated and her Afrikaner foes in the National Party swallowed up into the Democratic Alliance, successor to the old Progressive Party, with a charismatic young Jewish leader, Tony Leon, at the helm.

Jews are still playing a disproportionate role in Johannesburg society, especially in medicine, dentistry and law. The president of the Constitutional Court, the highest legal body in the country, is Judge Arthur Chaskelson. One of his judges is the well known former head of the International War Crimes Tribunal, Richard Goldstone. Among the myriad eminent Jewish lawyers and judges, the names of Sidney Kentridge and Issie Maisels stand out.

One no longer sees the cobblers, tailors or milliners, but modern entrepreneurs Donny Gordon (Liberty Life), Sol Kerzner (Sun International hotel group) and Raymond Ackerman (of the huge Pick ’n Pay supermarket chain) have emerged.

Nadine Gordimer won a Nobel Prize for Literature; Joseph Sherman was famous for his translation of Yiddish works. Barney Simon, Leonard Shach, Leon Gluckman and the effervescent Taubie Kushlik are among actors and producers of note. British actors Sir Anthony Sher and the late Laurence Harvey (Larry Skikne) both have their roots firmly in Johannesburg soil.

Recommendations:
The city boasts an array of five-star hotels. Good bets are The Hyatt International, 191 Oxford Road in Rosebank (280-1234); the Westcliff, 67 Jan Smuts Avenue in Parktown (646-2400); and the Sandton Sun and Towers Intercontinental, 5 Alice Lane, Sandton (780-5000).

Less opulent but good-value-for-money hotels and guest houses are Sunnyside Park, York Road in Parktown (643-7226); the Balalaika Hotel and Crown Court, 20 Maude Street in Sandown (322-5000); and the Rosebank, Tyrwhitt Avenue in Rosebank (447-2700).
In Sandringham, near the Jewish homes for the aged, George Street has affectionately become known as the “Kosher Strip” because of its array of kosher establishments, ranging from a butcher to a bakery.

There are good kosher eating places in Johannesburg. For meat and pareve it’s Chagalls in the Balfour Park shopping center (786-0593) and Shirley’s, 114 William Road, Norwood (728-0964). Michelow’s pizzeria is at 3 Dunnotar Street in Sydenham (485-4626). Nandos Chicken at 27 Aintree Avenue, Savoy (885-1496), is a popular fast-food chicken outlet.

Johannesburg has often been called the engine room of Africa. It is a melting pot of cultures and a microcosm of the world at large. In this vibrant metropolis Jewish influence is still today very tangible. Jews, as traditional fighters against apartheid injustice, are enthusiastic builders of the new, democratic South Africa.