The Golden Semicircle
1917-1957.
At the time of the foundation of the Anglo American Corporation, the
centre of interest was the Far East Rand, in which area the corporation
became firmly established owing to its original connexion with the Rand
Selection Corporation and the Consolidated Mines Selection Company.
This area continued to be of growing importance during the twenties,
during which decade an unsuccessful attempt was made to restore the
gold standard in the United Kingdom. The break-down of that standard
and the subsequent attempt to maintain the old parity with gold in
South Africa itself presented the Union and the mining industry with
great difficulties; once the South African pound was linked to sterling
and not to gold a new era dawned. Though in the earlier years of the
gold-mining industry there had been attempts to open up the Far West
Rand and the Klerksdorp areas and there had been sporadic efforts at
mining in the Orange Free State, it was the combination of new
technical methods of prospecting and the new economic situation created
by the departure from gold which gave the impetus to the effort to open
up new mines. The pioneer efforts were made by the Consolidated Gold
Fields of South Africa, speedily followed by Anglo American Corporation.
Prospecting
work in the Orange Free State began in the area immediately south of
the Vaal River and thence spread east, west and farther south. For
almost a decade the great expenditure of time and money proved almost
fruitless; and there was a moment when Anglo American Corporation was
almost out of the field altogether. It had become evident that the area
round the small town of Odendaalsrus was the critical one and here
Western Holdings, in the domain of Sir Abe Bailey, and African and
European Investment Company, in the domain of Lewis and Marks, were the
strategic properties. Ernest Oppenheimer acquired control of both
properties and it became obvious after World War II that by so doing
Anglo American Corporation was to be the dominating factor in the
Orange Free State field. The interests of Anglo American Corporation in
the Far West Rand and the Klerksdorp area had led to the formation of
the West Rand Investment Trust; the nascent interests in the Orange
Free State led to the formation of the Orange Free State Investment
Trust. The opening of the field presented immense problems of financing
and of settlement; the town-planning of Welkom and the improvement of
social conditions for the non-European workers went on concurrently
with the technical problems of financing and opening up of the mines.
As
an immediate consequence of the war, the gold-mining industry developed
a uranium industry of great importance, a development which in many
ways had a stimulating effect upon the South African economy generally.
