Guarding the soul of Barberton

When we protect Barberton’s heritage, we protect its soul. And in doing so, we secure a future worthy of its past.

Guarding the soul of Barberton
Background image: Google Earth.

Walk through Barberton’s historic streets and you can still feel the echoes of the gold rush, the footsteps of fortune seekers, the laughter spilling from old hotels, the pride of a community built on courage and hard work. Yet today, many of these landmarks, once the jewels of our heritage, stand neglected and tired.

This is not just about peeling paint, broken pavements, or roads full of potholes. It’s about what we, as a community, are willing to protect.

Our Barberton Heritage Walk, for one. A treasure map of stories, architecture, and living history. It has the potential to draw visitors from across the world. These buildings are not dusty relics; they are the backbone of our town’s identity, tangible proof of who we are and where we’ve come from.

If properly cared for, this walk could become a thriving artery of tourism, breathing life back into our economy and our streets. Imagine each building restored, each plaque telling its story, each corner buzzing with local guides, cafés, and craft markets. Tourists wouldn’t just visit Barberton, they’d experience it.

We don’t need to reinvent our town to attract investment. We simply need to treasure what we already have. The first step is clear: let’s focus on maintaining every site along the Heritage Walk.

This is where history meets opportunity.

When we protect Barberton’s heritage, we protect its soul. And in doing so, we secure a future worthy of its past. Barberton is off the beaten track. People need to travel to Barberton for a reason, it isn’t a town you just pass through to another destination. Our history is what should attract them to pause, and spend a day….. or two.

𝓛𝔂𝓷𝓮𝓽𝓽𝓮.

 • 𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 𝚜𝚞𝚋𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚛 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠𝚜, 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚌t Lynette 𝚟𝚒𝚊 𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚒𝚕 (editor@dekaapecho.co.za).
• 𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚗𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙𝚜, 𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚔𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐, 𝚘𝚛 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚎𝚗𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜, 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝙰𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚟𝚒𝚊 𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚒𝚕 (𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚗@𝚒𝚘𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚞𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚊.𝚌𝚘𝚖) 𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚊 𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚜𝙰𝚙𝚙 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎.