The first plots are sold in Mayfair on the West Rand

Updated: 30 Sep 2019

The Johannesburg suburb of Mayfair was laid out the farm Langlaagte No.258, the farm on which gold was discovered in the late 1800s.

The mineral rights of Langlaagte were bought by J.B Robinson in 1886, and the first plots were sold on 24 August 1896, after the land was surveyed by Government surveyor M.C. Vos.

The suburb is thought to have been named after the well-known London district.

How we know this

01Meiring,H, Van Der Waal, G-m., and Jonker, A., "Early Johannesburg, its buildings and its people", (early Johannesberg), pp 100
02Potgieter, D.J. et al. (eds)(1970) Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa, NASOU: Cape Town, v. 7, p. 258.

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2011, March 16). The first plots are sold in Mayfair on the West Rand. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011170

South African History Online (2011) 'The first plots are sold in Mayfair on the West Rand', South African History Online, 16 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011170 (Accessed: 29 October 2026).

South African History Online, The first plots are sold in Mayfair on the West Rand [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011170, (accessed 29 October 2026).

"The first plots are sold in Mayfair on the West Rand." South African History Online, 16 Mar. 2011, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011170. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

South African History Online. "The first plots are sold in Mayfair on the West Rand." South African History Online. March 16, 2011. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011170.