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DURBAN , the See also:principal seaport and largest See also:city of See also:Natal, See also:South See also:Africa, the See also:harbour being known as See also:Port Natal, in 29° 52' 48" S. 31° 42' 49" E. It is 6810 m. from See also:London via See also:Madeira and 7785 via See also:Suez, 823 M. by See also:water E.N.E. from Cape See also:Town and 483 M. by See also:rail S.S.E. of See also:Johannesburg. Pop. (1904) 67,842, of whom 31,302 were whites, 15,631 Asiatics (chiefly See also:British See also:Indians), 18,929 natives and 198o of mixed See also:race. From its situation and the See also:character of its buildings Durban is one of the finest cities in South Africa. The See also:climate is generally hot and humid, but not unhealthy. Although nearly See also:half the citizens are British, the large number of Indians engaged in every See also:kind of See also:work gives to Durban an See also:oriental aspect possessed by no other town in South Africa. The town is built on the E. See also:side of a See also:bay (Durban Bay or Bay of Natal), the entrance to which is marked on the See also:west by a bold cliff, the See also:Bluff, whose See also:summit is 195 ft. above the See also:sea, and on the See also:east by a See also:low sandy See also:spit called the Point. The city extends from the Point along the side of the bay and also for some distance along the See also:coast of the See also:Indian Ocean, and stretches inland to a range of low hills called the See also:Berea.
The See also:chief streets, See also:- SMITH
- SMITH, ADAM (1723–1790)
- SMITH, ALEXANDER (183o-1867)
- SMITH, ANDREW JACKSON (1815-1897)
- SMITH, CHARLES EMORY (1842–1908)
- SMITH, CHARLES FERGUSON (1807–1862)
- SMITH, CHARLOTTE (1749-1806)
- SMITH, COLVIN (1795—1875)
- SMITH, EDMUND KIRBY (1824-1893)
- SMITH, G
- SMITH, GEORGE (1789-1846)
- SMITH, GEORGE (184o-1876)
- SMITH, GEORGE ADAM (1856- )
- SMITH, GERRIT (1797–1874)
- SMITH, GOLDWIN (1823-191o)
- SMITH, HENRY BOYNTON (1815-1877)
- SMITH, HENRY JOHN STEPHEN (1826-1883)
- SMITH, HENRY PRESERVED (1847– )
- SMITH, JAMES (1775–1839)
- SMITH, JOHN (1579-1631)
- SMITH, JOHN RAPHAEL (1752–1812)
- SMITH, JOSEPH, JR
- SMITH, MORGAN LEWIS (1822–1874)
- SMITH, RICHARD BAIRD (1818-1861)
- SMITH, ROBERT (1689-1768)
- SMITH, SIR HENRY GEORGE WAKELYN
- SMITH, SIR THOMAS (1513-1577)
- SMITH, SIR WILLIAM (1813-1893)
- SMITH, SIR WILLIAM SIDNEY (1764-1840)
- SMITH, SYDNEY (1771-1845)
- SMITH, THOMAS SOUTHWOOD (1788-1861)
- SMITH, WILLIAM (1769-1839)
- SMITH, WILLIAM (c. 1730-1819)
- SMITH, WILLIAM (fl. 1596)
- SMITH, WILLIAM FARRAR (1824—1903)
- SMITH, WILLIAM HENRY (1808—1872)
- SMITH, WILLIAM HENRY (1825—1891)
- SMITH, WILLIAM ROBERTSON (1846-'894)
Smith, West and See also:Pine, are in the See also:lower town, parallel to one another and to the bay. They contain the principal public buildings, warehouses and shops, the Berea being a residential See also:quarter. Of the three streets mentioned, West See also:Street, the central thoroughfare, is the busiest. In its centre are the public gardens, in which is a handsome See also:block of buildings in the See also:Renaissance See also:style, built in 1906–1908 at a cost of over £300,000, containing the town See also:- HALL
- HALL (generally known as SCHWABISCH-HALL, tc distinguish it from the small town of Hall in Tirol and Bad-Hall, a health resort in Upper Austria)
- HALL (O.E. heall, a common Teutonic word, cf. Ger. Halle)
- HALL, BASIL (1788-1844)
- HALL, CARL CHRISTIAN (1812–1888)
- HALL, CHARLES FRANCIS (1821-1871)
- HALL, CHRISTOPHER NEWMAN (1816—19oz)
- HALL, EDWARD (c. 1498-1547)
- HALL, FITZEDWARD (1825-1901)
- HALL, ISAAC HOLLISTER (1837-1896)
- HALL, JAMES (1793–1868)
- HALL, JAMES (1811–1898)
- HALL, JOSEPH (1574-1656)
- HALL, MARSHALL (1790-1857)
- HALL, ROBERT (1764-1831)
- HALL, SAMUEL CARTER (5800-5889)
- HALL, SIR JAMES (1761-1832)
- HALL, WILLIAM EDWARD (1835-1894)
hall, municipal offices, public library, museum and See also:art See also:gallery. The art gallery holds many pictures of the See also:modern British school. Opposite the municipal buildings are the See also:post and See also:telegraph offices, a See also:fine edifice (built 1881–1885) with a See also:clock See also:tower 164 ft. high. The post See also:- OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")
office formerly served as town hall. In Pine Street is the Central railway station and the spacious See also:Market See also:House. Among the churches St See also:Cyprian's (See also:Anglican), in Smith Street, has a See also:hand-some See also:chancel. The See also:Roman See also:Catholic See also:cathedral is a fine See also:building in the See also:Gothic style. The town possesses several parks, one, the See also:Victoria See also:Park, facing the Indian Ocean. This See also:part of the town is laid out with See also:pleasure grounds and esplanades. The botanic gardens, in the upper town, contain a very fine collection of flowering shrubs and semi-tropical trees. Above the gardens is the See also:observatory. There is a fine statue of See also:Queen Victoria by Hamo See also:Thornycroft, R.A., in the public gardens, and a memorial to Vasco da Gama at the Point. There is an extensive See also:system of electric trams. Another favourite means of See also:conveyance is by rickshaw, the runners being Zulus. The town is governed by a See also:municipality which owns the water and electric See also:lighting supplies and the See also:tramway system. The sanitary services are excellent. The See also:main water-See also:supply is the Umlaas See also:river, which enters the ocean 10 m. S. of the port. The municipal valuation, which is based on See also:capital value, was £9,494,400 in 1909, the See also:rate, including water, being 2zd. in the £.
The entrance to the harbour was obstructed by a formidable See also:sand See also:bar, but as the result of dredging operations there is now a minimum See also:depth of water at the opening of the channel into the bay of over 30 ft., with a maximum depth of over 33 ft. The width of the passage between the Bluff and the Point is 450 ft. From the See also:foot of the Bluff a See also:breakwater extends over 2000 ft. into the sea, and parallel to it, starting from the Point, is a See also:pier. The harbour is landlocked, and covers 71 sq. m.
Much of this See also:area is shoal water, but the See also:accommodation avail-able was largely increased by the removal during 1904–1908 of 24,000,000 tons of sand. The port has over 3 M. of wharfage. It possesses a floating See also:dock capable of lifting a See also:vessel of 85oo tons, a floating workshop, a patent slip for small See also:craft, See also:hydraulic See also:cranes, &c. The minimum depth alongside the quays at low water is 23 ft., increased at places to over 30 ft. The principal wharves, where passengers, mails and See also:general merchandise are landed, are along the Point. On the opposite side at the foot of the Bluff See also:land has been reclaimed and extensive accommodation provided for See also:ships coaling. At Congella at the N.E. end of the harbour some 65 acres of land were reclaimed during 1905–1906, and wharves built for the handling of heavy and bulky goods such as See also:timber and corrugated See also:iron. Here also are situated warehouses and railway See also:works. The port is defended by batteries armed with modern heavy guns. The See also:trade of the port is almost coextensive with the See also:foreign trade of Natal.
See also:History.—The See also:early history of Durban is closely identified with that of the See also:colony of Natal. The first permanent See also:settlement by See also:- WHITE
- WHITE, ANDREW DICKSON (1832– )
- WHITE, GILBERT (1720–1793)
- WHITE, HENRY KIRKE (1785-1806)
- WHITE, HUGH LAWSON (1773-1840)
- WHITE, JOSEPH BLANCO (1775-1841)
- WHITE, RICHARD GRANT (1822-1885)
- WHITE, ROBERT (1645-1704)
- WHITE, SIR GEORGE STUART (1835– )
- WHITE, SIR THOMAS (1492-1567)
- WHITE, SIR WILLIAM ARTHUR (1824--1891)
- WHITE, SIR WILLIAM HENRY (1845– )
- WHITE, THOMAS (1628-1698)
- WHITE, THOMAS (c. 1550-1624)
white men in the bay was made by Englishmen in 1824, when See also:Lieutenant F. G. Farewell, R. N., and about ten companions went thither from Cape Town in the brig " See also:Salisbury," from which circumstance the See also:island in the bay gets its name. In 1835 a town-See also:ship was laid out and the colonists gave it the name of D'See also:Urban, in See also:honour of See also:Sir See also:Benjamin D'Urban, then See also:governor of Cape Colony. At this See also:- TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
- TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
- TIME, STANDARD
time a See also:mission See also:- CHURCH
- CHURCH (according to most authorities derived from the Gr. Kvpcaxov [&wµa], " the Lord's [house]," and common to many Teutonic, Slavonic and other languages under various forms—Scottish kirk, Ger. Kirche, Swed. kirka, Dan. kirke, Russ. tserkov, Buig. cerk
- CHURCH, FREDERICK EDWIN (1826-1900)
- CHURCH, GEORGE EARL (1835–1910)
- CHURCH, RICHARD WILLIAM (1815–189o)
- CHURCH, SIR RICHARD (1784–1873)
church was built on the heights overlooking the bay by See also:Captain See also:- ALLEN, BOG OF
- ALLEN, ETHAN (1739–1789)
- ALLEN, GRANT CHARLES GRANT BLAIRFINDIEI, (1848–1899)
- ALLEN, JAMES LANE (1850– )
- ALLEN, JOHN (1476–1534)
- ALLEN, or ALLEYN, THOMAS (1542-1632)
- ALLEN, WILLIAM (1532-1594)
- ALLEN, WILLIAM FRANCIS (183o-1889)
Allen See also:Gardner, R.N., who named the See also:- HILL
- HILL (0. Eng. hyll; cf. Low Ger. hull, Mid. Dutch hul, allied to Lat. celsus, high, collis, hill, &c.)
- HILL, A
- HILL, AARON (1685-175o)
- HILL, AMBROSE POWELL
- HILL, DANIEL HARVEY (1821-1889)
- HILL, DAVID BENNETT (1843–1910)
- HILL, GEORGE BIRKBECK NORMAN (1835-1903)
- HILL, JAMES J
- HILL, JOHN (c. 1716-1775)
- HILL, MATTHEW DAVENPORT (1792-1872)
- HILL, OCTAVIA (1838– )
- HILL, ROWLAND (1744–1833)
- HILL, SIR ROWLAND (1795-1879)
hill Berea in gratitude for support received from the settlers, whom he found "(more See also:noble than those of " Zululand—Dingaan having refused to allow the captain to start a mission among his See also:people. From See also:December 1838 to December 1839 a small British military force was stationed at the port. On its recall the little settlement was taken See also:possession of by Dutch emigrants from the Cape, who had defeated the Zulu See also:- KING
- KING (O. Eng. cyning, abbreviated into cyng, cing; cf. O. H. G. chun- kuning, chun- kunig, M.H.G. kiinic, kiinec, kiinc, Mod. Ger. Konig, O. Norse konungr, kongr, Swed. konung, kung)
- KING [OF OCKHAM], PETER KING, 1ST BARON (1669-1734)
- KING, CHARLES WILLIAM (1818-1888)
- KING, CLARENCE (1842–1901)
- KING, EDWARD (1612–1637)
- KING, EDWARD (1829–1910)
- KING, HENRY (1591-1669)
- KING, RUFUS (1755–1827)
- KING, THOMAS (1730–1805)
- KING, WILLIAM (1650-1729)
- KING, WILLIAM (1663–1712)
king Dingaan, and who the See also:year before at the upper end of the bay had formed an encampment, Kangela (look-out), the See also:present Congella. The Dutch claimed See also:independence, and on the block-house at Durban hoisted the See also:flag of the " See also:Republic of Natalia." In 1842, however, a British military force reoccupied Durban, and on the 15th of See also:July of that year a treaty was signed in which the Dutch recognized British See also:sovereignty (see further NATAL: History). From that date Durban, though not the seat of See also:government, became the principal town in Natal. In 185o there were 500 white in-habitants, and in 1853 the town was granted municipal government. The first See also:mayor was Mr See also:George See also:Cato (c. 1810-1893), one of the earliest settlers in Natal. In 186o a railway from the Point to the town, the first railway in South Africa, was opened. The
See also:discovery of the See also:gold-mines on the See also:Rand greatly increased the importance of the port, and renewed efforts were made to remove the bar which obstructed the entrance to the bay. The Harbour See also:Board, which was formed in 1881 and ceased to exist in 1893, effected, under the guidance of Mr Harry See also:Escombe, enormous improvements in the port—on which the prosperity of Durban is dependent. But it was not until 1904 that the fairway was deepened sufficiently to allow See also:mail steamers of the largest class to enter the harbour. The growth of the port as illustrated by customs receipts is shown in the increase from £250,000 in 188o to £98',000 in 1904. In 1846 the customs See also:revenue was returned at £3510.
See Durban: Fifty Years' Municipal History, compiled for the See also:corporation by W. P. M. See also:Henderson, Asst. Town Clerk (Durban, 1904) ; G. See also:- RUSSELL (FAMILY)
- RUSSELL, ISRAEL COOK (1852- )
- RUSSELL, JOHN (1745-1806)
- RUSSELL, JOHN (d. 1494)
- RUSSELL, JOHN RUSSELL, 1ST EARL (1792-1878)
- RUSSELL, JOHN SCOTT (1808–1882)
- RUSSELL, LORD WILLIAM (1639–1683)
- RUSSELL, SIR WILLIAM HOWARD
- RUSSELL, THOMAS (1762-1788)
- RUSSELL, WILLIAM CLARK (1844– )
Russell, History of Old Durban [to 186oJ (Durban, 1899).
End of Article: DURBAN
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