Witwatersrand genesis: a comparative study of some early gold mining companies, 1886-1894
- Authors: Webb, Arthur (Arthur C M)
- Date: 1982
- Subjects: Gold mines and mining -- South Africa -- History Gold mines and mining -- South Africa -- Witwatersrand -- History Ferreira Gold Mining Company (Firm) Witwatersrand Gold Mining Company (Firm) Simmer and Jack Gold Mining Company (Firm) Wemmer Gold Mining Company (Firm)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:1029 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003725
- Description: Preface: For anyone standing on the ridge of the Witwatersrand on a spring day in September 1886 the sight immediately to the south represented a hive of activity and hope. Nearly a hundred years later ample evidence stretches away on both sides of the watershed to confirm the fulfilment of those early sentiments. It is, nevertheless, all too easy to ignore the struggles and failures which marked the beginnings of the world's greatest gold field in the light of its subsequent abundant success. Only when attention is turned to the individual companies formed to exploit the discovery does the true picture emerge of the lack of adequate technological and managerial knowledge amongst the early pioneers and of the financial frailty of their companies. The object of this thesis is to shed light on these beginnings by reviewing the histories of four of the earliest companies established to work the main reef. The approach adopted is to scrutinize the material available with a view to determining the motivations and actions of the managements of the various companies with regard to their economic environment, whether within or without the individual company. Clearly, the availability of information is a major determinant of the success of any such venture and this was particularly so in the case of the companies considered. With the exception of the Barlow Rand Limited holding of the H. Eckstein and Company Archives, which offers an integral coverage of that firm's dealings with the emerging industry, and which is certainly the most comprehensive source of information available to the researcher, little material relating to specific gold mining companies has survived. Under these circumstances it was necessary to rely heavily for information on the local press. These newspapers proved an invaluable source in this regard. As a mining camp with a limited capacity for generating newsworthy incidents, the newspapers of early Johannesburg found an eager readership for information about the industry which lay at the heart of the community. For their part, the managements of the various mining companies found in the pages of the local press an outlet for intelligence both true and false; the press was a useful vehicle for the publication of directors' and annual reports to meet a wider audience, but similarly it could be and was used to disseminate 'spectacular' reports calculated to influence the status of a company's stock on the local share market. As a research source the press has thus to be approached with caution but its value, if the warning is heeded, is in no way diminished. Beyond these two sources the next most valuable accumulation of data on the early industry is "The Gold Fields Collection" housed in the Cory Library for Historical Research at Rhodes University. As a collection it is far from complete and it is to be hoped that the donors will in future see fit to augment it with further material as this becomes available. It neverthess proved an invaluable source for the investigation of at least one of the companies of the study and for a general background to the industry.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1982
- Authors: Webb, Arthur (Arthur C M)
- Date: 1982
- Subjects: Gold mines and mining -- South Africa -- History Gold mines and mining -- South Africa -- Witwatersrand -- History Ferreira Gold Mining Company (Firm) Witwatersrand Gold Mining Company (Firm) Simmer and Jack Gold Mining Company (Firm) Wemmer Gold Mining Company (Firm)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:1029 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003725
- Description: Preface: For anyone standing on the ridge of the Witwatersrand on a spring day in September 1886 the sight immediately to the south represented a hive of activity and hope. Nearly a hundred years later ample evidence stretches away on both sides of the watershed to confirm the fulfilment of those early sentiments. It is, nevertheless, all too easy to ignore the struggles and failures which marked the beginnings of the world's greatest gold field in the light of its subsequent abundant success. Only when attention is turned to the individual companies formed to exploit the discovery does the true picture emerge of the lack of adequate technological and managerial knowledge amongst the early pioneers and of the financial frailty of their companies. The object of this thesis is to shed light on these beginnings by reviewing the histories of four of the earliest companies established to work the main reef. The approach adopted is to scrutinize the material available with a view to determining the motivations and actions of the managements of the various companies with regard to their economic environment, whether within or without the individual company. Clearly, the availability of information is a major determinant of the success of any such venture and this was particularly so in the case of the companies considered. With the exception of the Barlow Rand Limited holding of the H. Eckstein and Company Archives, which offers an integral coverage of that firm's dealings with the emerging industry, and which is certainly the most comprehensive source of information available to the researcher, little material relating to specific gold mining companies has survived. Under these circumstances it was necessary to rely heavily for information on the local press. These newspapers proved an invaluable source in this regard. As a mining camp with a limited capacity for generating newsworthy incidents, the newspapers of early Johannesburg found an eager readership for information about the industry which lay at the heart of the community. For their part, the managements of the various mining companies found in the pages of the local press an outlet for intelligence both true and false; the press was a useful vehicle for the publication of directors' and annual reports to meet a wider audience, but similarly it could be and was used to disseminate 'spectacular' reports calculated to influence the status of a company's stock on the local share market. As a research source the press has thus to be approached with caution but its value, if the warning is heeded, is in no way diminished. Beyond these two sources the next most valuable accumulation of data on the early industry is "The Gold Fields Collection" housed in the Cory Library for Historical Research at Rhodes University. As a collection it is far from complete and it is to be hoped that the donors will in future see fit to augment it with further material as this becomes available. It neverthess proved an invaluable source for the investigation of at least one of the companies of the study and for a general background to the industry.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1982
Some aspects of the Franco-German economic relations between the two world wars
- Authors: Wolf, Hans J
- Date: 1970
- Subjects: Economic history -- 1918-1945 , France -- Economic conditions -- 20th century , Germany -- Economic conditions -- 20th century , France -- Foreign relations -- Germany , Germany -- Foreign relations -- France
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:1067 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007687
- Description: From Preface: In this thesis I have aimed at covering a field in Economic History where not many suitable publications are available in English. During the interwar period, the maintenance of peace and harmonious international relations was directly dependent on a reconciliation of the conflicting interests between France and Germany. In studying the economic implications of the Franco-German antagonism, I have tried to throw light upon the crucial role which this relationship played. The Appendix offers a quantitative survey of economic conditions in the two countries and of the relevant production and exchange problems. To assist the reader who is not completely familiar with this period, a brief summary of the relevant conferences, agreements and treaties is also offered in the Appendix, as well as some short biographical notes. I would like to make it clear, however, that this thesis is neither supposed to be a paraphrase of the Appendix, nor a mere treatise on the commercial relations between the two countries concerned. I aimed rather at revealing the forces behind the events and at illustrating how economic problems became quite often subject to political and military considerations. When trying to attain some understanding of Franco-German relations, it seems advisable to look not only at the interbellum period, but in the first instance to become aware of the currents of history which finally led to the two disastrous World Wars.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1970
- Authors: Wolf, Hans J
- Date: 1970
- Subjects: Economic history -- 1918-1945 , France -- Economic conditions -- 20th century , Germany -- Economic conditions -- 20th century , France -- Foreign relations -- Germany , Germany -- Foreign relations -- France
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:1067 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007687
- Description: From Preface: In this thesis I have aimed at covering a field in Economic History where not many suitable publications are available in English. During the interwar period, the maintenance of peace and harmonious international relations was directly dependent on a reconciliation of the conflicting interests between France and Germany. In studying the economic implications of the Franco-German antagonism, I have tried to throw light upon the crucial role which this relationship played. The Appendix offers a quantitative survey of economic conditions in the two countries and of the relevant production and exchange problems. To assist the reader who is not completely familiar with this period, a brief summary of the relevant conferences, agreements and treaties is also offered in the Appendix, as well as some short biographical notes. I would like to make it clear, however, that this thesis is neither supposed to be a paraphrase of the Appendix, nor a mere treatise on the commercial relations between the two countries concerned. I aimed rather at revealing the forces behind the events and at illustrating how economic problems became quite often subject to political and military considerations. When trying to attain some understanding of Franco-German relations, it seems advisable to look not only at the interbellum period, but in the first instance to become aware of the currents of history which finally led to the two disastrous World Wars.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1970
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