Waterfall, Witwatersrand National Botanical Gardens.

Witwatersrand National Botanical Gardens.

The Witwatersrand is a low, sedimentary range of hills, at an elevation of 1700-1800 metres above sea-level, which runs in an east-west direction through Gauteng in South Africa. Gauteng (xaʊˈtɛŋ Sotho xɑ́útʼèŋ̀ is a province of South Africa. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The word in Afrikaans means "the ridge of white waters". Afrikaans is an Indo-European language, derived from 17th century Dutch and classified as Low Franconian Germanic, mainly spoken in Geologically it is complex, but the principal formations are quartzites, conglomerates and shales of the Witwatersrand System. Quartzite (from German Quarzit) not to be confused with the Mineral Quartz, is a hard Metamorphic rock which was originally A conglomerate (kɒnˈglɒmərət is a rock consisting of individual stones that have become cemented together Shale (also called mudstone) is a fine-grained Sedimentary rock whose original constituents were Clay minerals or Muds It is characterized by It forms a continental divide with run-off to the north draining into the Limpopo River and Indian Ocean and to the south draining into the Orange River and Atlantic. A continental divide is a line of elevated Terrain which forms a border between two watersheds such that Water falling on one side of the line eventually The Limpopo River rises in central southern Africa, and flows generally eastwards to the Indian Ocean. The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's Oceanic divisions covering about 20% of the water on the Earth 's surface The Orange River ( Afrikaans / Dutch: Oranjerivier) Gariep River, Groote River or Senqu River is the longest river in The Witwatersrand lies within the province of Gauteng, formerly called the PWV area, an acronym for Pretoria, Witwatersrand, and Vereeniging. Gauteng (xaʊˈtɛŋ Sotho xɑ́útʼèŋ̀ is a province of South Africa. Acronyms, initialisms, and alphabetisms are Abbreviations that are formed using the initial components in a phrase or name Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. Vereeniging is a city in Gauteng province, South Africa, with a population of more than 350000

The "Rand" or reef, as the Witwatersrand is sometimes known, is famous for being the source of 40% of the gold ever mined from the earth. In nautical terminology a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water (six fathoms or less at low water Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 EARTH was a short-lived Japanese vocal trio which released 6 singles and 1 album between 2000 and 2001 It extends for 280 kilometres from Klerksdorp in the west to Bethal in the east and is 3. Klerksdorp is a City and administrative District located in the North West Province (formerly Western Transvaal) South Africa. Bethal is a small farming town in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The farms in the region produce Maize, Sunflower seeds Sorghum, 6 kilometres (12,000 feet) deep in places. The South African currency was named after it. The rand ( sign: R; code: ZAR) is the Currency of South Africa. The reef's most northerly tip was discovered only a few kilometers from the present day town of Magaliesburg, at Blaauwbank, in 1874. Magaliesburg is a small town situated on foot of the Magaliesberg mountain range in Gauteng, South Africa. Year 1874 ( MDCCCLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Witwatersrand also denotes the Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area, which spans the length of the gold-bearing reef. The Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area is the name of the area surrounding the city of Johannesburg, in South Africa. The metropolitan area is oblong in shape and runs from the area of Randfontein and Carletonville in the west to Springs in the east. Randfontein is a Gold mining town in western Gauteng, South Africa, 45 km west of Johannesburg Carletonville is a gold-mining town in western Gauteng, South Africa. Springs (26°15'S 28°26'E(5340 ft is a City in Gauteng province, South Africa and is part of the East Rand, now known as the Ekurhuleni It includes the vast urban areas of the East and West Rand, and Soweto. The East Rand is the name of the urban eastern part of the Witwatersrand that is functionally merged with the Johannesburg Conurbation. West Rand is the name of the urban western part of the Witwatersrand that is functionally merged with the Johannesburg Conurbation. Soweto is an urban area in the City of Johannesburg, in Gauteng, South Africa.

JH Davis, an Englishman was reported to have found gold "in considerable quantities" in July 1852 at Paardekraal near Krugersdorp, which was the earliest discovery on the Rand. Krugersdorp ( Afrikaans for Kruger's town is a mining city in the West Rand of Gauteng, South Africa. Davis had sold £600 worth of gold to the Transvaal Treasury and had shortly thereafter been ordered out of the country in accordance with the prevailing policy of secrecy. In October 1853 Pieter Jacob Marais, born in Cape Town on 31 July 1826, discovered gold on the banks of the Jukskei River - this find too was hushed up. The first mining concern (the Nil Desperandum Co-operative Gold Company) was formed at Blaauwbank in 1874. Gold was mined at various places on the Rand up to 1886, when the discovery of the Witwatersrand Main Reef set off the historic gold rush. The subsequent discovery of other rich and profitable veins of gold, eventually led to the creation of the largest urban conglomeration in Sub-Saharan Africa.

At present, the only "operational" gold mining activity in the area occurs at the Blaauwbank Gold Mine and Museum, situated close to Magaliesburg.