Berea, Gauteng

26°11′06″S 28°03′11″E / 26.185°S 28.053°E / -26.185; 28.053CountrySouth AfricaProvinceGautengMunicipalityCity of JohannesburgMain PlaceJohannesburgEstablished1893Area • Total1.01 km² (0.39 sq mi)Population • Total42,801 • Density42,000/km² (110,000/sq mi)Racial makeup (2011) • Black African97.1% • Coloured0.9% • Indian/Asian0.9% • White0.7% • Other0.4%First languages (2011) • Zulu32.9% • Southern Ndebele18.7% • English13.0% • Northern Sotho5.0% • Other30.4%Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)Postal code (street)

Berea is an inner city neighbourhood of Johannesburg, in the South African province of Gauteng. It is east and adjacent to the Johannesburg CBD. It is located in Region F of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality.

It is located in between Yeoville and Hillbrow to the east and west respectively. It is notorious for high levels of crime and population density. Barnato Park High School is located in the neighbourhood

History

The suburb is situated on part of an old Witwatersrand farm called Doornfontein.^[2] It was established in 1893 and is named after Berea, Durban.^[2]

Jewish community

For much of the twentieth century, the area was home to a significant Jewish community.^[3] Berea Shul was consecrated in 1968.^[4] A year earlier, the shul commissioned Herman Wald to design and create a sculpture. From sheet copper, Wald designed a large pair of wings. They were installed above the ark and surrounded a plaque of the Ten Commandments.^[4]The late Rabbi Morris Swift, a prominent champion of halachic law, also served the congregation for a time.^[5] The neighbourhood was also home to the Etz Chaim Shul.^[6] As most Jewish residents eventually migrated to the northern suburbs, the synagogues were de-consecrated and the old Berea Shul building now houses a church.^[4]

In 1902, Corona Lodge was built as a Masonic Society Lodge. The Lodge later fell out of use and was then used by the local Jewish community.^[7]The lodge was used by the precursor to the Yeshiva College of South Africa, which was established in 1953. The Yeshiva Katanah divided classes between Corona Lodge and the Beth Hamedrash Hagadol in Doornfontein. Afternoon classes were held at the lodge under the supervision of Rabbi Michel Kossowsky, an Eastern European Talmudic scholar who had settled in South Africa during the Holocaust, and Rabbi Baruch Rabinowitz. The subjects the rabbis taught classes around Talmud, Mishnah, Prophets, Laws and Customs and Ethics of Judaism.^[7]

References