Power to the People – Electric Newtown

Newtown is well-known as a vibrant arts and culture precinct, but the history of this fascinating area goes back much further, to the earliest days of Joburg. Back then, this marshy ground outside Johannesburg's original border was simply known as Brickfields.

Join your guides Karen Curry and David Fleminger to discover how Newtown grew from a muddy slum into the city’s second market square, with its magnificent Edwardian market building.

We’ll also explore Newtown’s heritage as the location of the city’s main power station and electric workshop, and discuss its continuing evolution as a dynamic inner-city cultural hub that includes the Market Theatre, Museum Africa, the Sci Bono Centre, the Workers Museum and many other important institutions.

After the tour, you are welcome to explore Museum Africa or the Sci Bono Centre further, at your leisure. Secure underground parking is available at the Newtown Junction Mall on the corner of Miriam Makeba Street and Gwigwi Mrwebi Street. We will meet outside the main entrance to the Market Theatre.

Please bring along drinking water and wear comfortable walking shoes, a sunhat and sunblock. As this is an inner-city tour, we recommend that you leave your valuables at home.