Architecture

As Barberton is one of the oldest towns in Mpumalanga, its buildings portray the different fashions in architecture from the Victorian era to the modern blocky angular take on design. Some of the more interesting buildings include the first double-story building in the Transvaal, the Lewis and Marks Building, situated next to the Phoenix hotel in Pilgrim Street. Sammy Marks moved on, following the gold-rush to Johannesburg, where he became a multi-millionaire.

Belhaven and Stopforth Houses are both house museums open to the public and are furnished in the style of the period. The latter retains all its original furnishings and fascinating paraphernalia. Fernley House in Rimer’s Creek was built in the 1890s and is also a heritage site.

The Cockney Liz Hotel was built in the first part the 1900’s in what is known as “ships architecture”, popular at the time.