The Witwatersrand Gold Rush was a gold rush in 1886 that led to the establishment of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was a key part of the Mineral Revolution. There had always been rumours of a modern-day "El Dorado" in the folklore of the native tribes that roamed the plains of the South African highveld and in that of the gold miners who had come from all over the world to seek out their fortunes on the alluvial mines of Barberton and Pilgrim's Rest, in what is now known as the province of Mpumalanga, but it was not until 1886. Scientific studies have pointed to the fact that the "Golden Arc" which stretches from Johannesburg to Welkom was once a massive inland lake, that silt and gold deposits from alluvial gold settled in the area to form the gold-rich deposits that South Africa is famous for; the first discovery of gold in the region is recorded as being in 1852 in the Pardekraal farm by J. H. Davis, an English miner, he was subsequently ordered to leave the country. Another find by Pieter Jacob Marais was recorded in 1853 on the Jukskei River, but was subject to similar secrecy.

Though there were smaller mining operations in the region, it wasn’t until 1884 and the subsequent 1886 discovery at Langlaagte that the Witwatersrand gold rush got under way in earnest. Explorer and prospector Jan Gerrit Bantjes was the first and original discoverer of a Witwatersrand gold reef in June 1884 having prospected the area since the early 1880s, as well as co-operating the Kromdraai Gold Mine in 1883 to the NW of present-day Johannesburg together with his partner Johannes Stephanus Minnaar in an area known today as "The Cradle of Humankind". However, these were minor reefs, today the general consensus falsely holds that credit for the discovery of the main gold reef must be attributed to George Harrison, whose findings on the farm Langlaagte were made in July 1886, either through accident or systematic prospecting; this at the time was a British attempt to give credit for the discovery to the Anglo sector in an attempt to justify claiming the Witwatersrand fields as British. This move was one of the factors leading to the Anglo Boer War of 1899-1902.

Harrison declared his claim with the then-government of the Suid Afrikaanse Republiek, the area was pronounced open. His discovery is recorded in history with a monument where the original gold outcrop is believed to be located, a park named in his honour. Harrison is believed to have sold his claim for less than 10 Pounds before leaving the area. News of gold spread and reached Cecil Rhodes in Kimberley. Rhodes and his partner Robinson with a team of companions were curious and rode over 400 km to Bantjes' camp at Vogelstruisfontein and stayed with him for two nights near what would become Roodepoort. Rhodes purchased the first batch of Witwatersrand gold from Bantjes for £3000; this purchase would be the first transaction of the newly formed company Consolidated Gold Fields of South Africa. The world's largest gold rush had begun and South Africa would never be the same. News spread around the world and prospectors from Australia to California began arriving in masses and the first lanterns of a soon to be Johannesburg began flickering along dusty streets.

For a number of years all went well, but President Paul Kruger of the South African Republic began getting worried so many foreigners would soon outnumber the Boers, the first of certain "measures" were put into place. Bantjes, whose father Jan Gerritze Bantjes had educated Kruger when he was a boy during the Great Trek, had discussions with Kruger regarding those "measures." One of them was to place heavy taxes on the sale of dynamite to the foreigners so as to slow the momentum. This only agitated the miners and gave the British another reason to make a grab for the gold fields and take the lot for themselves; the disastrous Jameson Raid followed. The Jameson Raid was led by Sir Leander Starr Jameson, its intent was to turn the region into a British colony. There were 500 men, it did not take long for fortune-seekers from all over the world to flock to the area, soon what was a dusty mining village known as Ferreira's Camp was formalised into a settlement. The ZAR did not believe that the gold would last for long, mapped out a small triangular piece of land to cram as many plots onto as possible.

This is the reason. There is some dispute as to the origin of the name Johannesburg and to which Johannes, a common Dutch name, the city was named after, it is thought to be named after two state surveyors who were sent to choose an area for the layout of the new town, Johann Rissik and Christiaan Johannes Joubert. Within 10 years, the town was the largest in South Africa, outstripping the growth of Cape Town, more than 200 years older; the gold rush saw massive development of Johannesburg and the Witwatersrand, the area remains the prime metropolitan area of South Africa. One consequence of the gold rush was the construction of the first railway lines in this part of Africa; as a result of the rapid development of the goldfields on the Witwatersrand in the 1880s and the demand for coal by the growing industry, a concession was granted by the ZAR government to the Netherlands-South African Railway Company on July 20, 1888, to construct a 16 miles railway line from Johannesburg to Boksburg. The line was opened on March 17, 1890 with the first train being hauled by a 14 Tonner locomotive, became known as the "Randtram"

Shawn Patrick Christian is an American television and film actor. After graduating from Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan in 1989 with a degree in marketing, he moved to Chicago to pursue an acting career, he began appearing in commercials. He worked on stage with improvisational company Improv Olympic. In 1994, he was the first male spokesman on Star Search, he landed his first television role as Mike Kasnoff in 1994 on As the World Turns. In 1995, he was nominated for "Hottest Male Star" by Soap Opera Digest magazine, he starred on the show until 1997 before moving to Los Angeles. In 1999, he had a recurring role in The WB television series Charmed as Josh, the love interest of Piper Halliwell, played by Holly Marie Combs, he landed the role of Johnny Durant on WB's short lived series Summerland. In 2002, he portrayed the role of Ross Rayburn in the soap opera One Life to Live, he was cast as a potential cowboy boyfriend of Jack in an episode of the final season of Will & Grace. In his most notable television role, Christian played doctor Daniel Jonas on Days of Our Lives from 2008 to 2017.

Christian married Deborah Quinn on May 18, 1996. The couple met in 1991, they have a son Kameron. Christian's stepdaughter is actress Taylor Cole; the two acted together in the television series Summerland and the Hallmark channel made-for-tv film Ruby Herring Mysteries: Silent Witness. Shawn Christian on IMDb

3d Light Antiaircraft Missile Battalion was a United States Marine Corps air defense unit equipped with the medium range surface-to-air MIM-23 HAWK Missile System. During World War II, the battalion was known as the 3rd Defense Battalion and took part in combat operations at Pearl Harbor, Midway and Bougainville; the unit was deactivated in late 1944 but was brought back into service as the Marine Corps began to transition to surface to air missiles for their air defense needs in the early 1950s. During the mid to late 1950s, the battalion was based at Marine Corps Training Center 29 Palms and was one of two Marine Corps units that operated the land-based version of the RIM-2 Terrier Missile. In January 1963 3d LAAM battalion was moved to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina and would fall under the command of Marine Air Control Group 28 and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing. 3d LAAM Battalion's final combat tour saw it providing air defense for the Marine Corps area of operations during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm.

3d LAAM Battalion was deactivated on 30 September 1994 as part of the post-Cold War draw down of forces and because the Marine Corps had made the decision to divest itself of its medium-range air defense. The defense battalions were first conceived from the fixed defense concept during the Marine Corps's, as well the United States Navy's, critical change in their traditional sea service role to a more "aggressive" amphibious landing force; the first battalions were created in 1939, when the outbreak of World War II caused concerns that overseas bases might be attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy.1st Battalion, 15th Marines was organized at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia on 19 December 1938 with the establishment of a Headquarters and Service Battery on top of the existing” “A Battery and “B” Battery. The battalion moved to Marine Corps Base Paris Island, South Carolina in early October 1939 and was redesignated as the 3d Defense Battalion on 10 October 1939 under Lieutenant colonel Robert H. Pepper.

By December 1939 the battalion consisted of a Headquarters & Services Battery, the 5” Artillery Unit, the 3” AAA Unit, Battery G, Battery H and Battery I. After winter training, the battalion boarded USS Chaumont on 5 April 1940 at Charleston, South Carolina, they sailed for Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii arriving on 7 May 1940. A number of Marine Corps defense battalions were sent to the Pacific during this time period in order to defend outlying American possessions as detailed in War Plan Orange. During their first 8 months in Hawaii the battalion supplied numerous reconnaissance and advance parties to begin the preliminary work of supplying and defending the installation on Midway Island. On 27 January 1941 the Chief of Naval Operations directed the 3d Defense Battalion to move to Midway, they arrived at Midway on 14 February 1941 and remained garrisoned there 11 September when they were relieved by the 6th Defense Battalion. 3d Defense Battalion returned to Hawaii on 15 September 1941 on board USS Wharton.

The battalion was stationed at the Marine Barracks, Pearl Harbor during the 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Following the events at Pearl Harbor, 3d Defense Battalion provided reinforcements for the outlying US garrisons at Midway and Palmyra Islands. During this time the battalion added two additional batteries in May 1942, Battery K under the Machine Gun Group and Battery L. On 22 May 1942 the battalion’s anti-aircraft group consisting of H&S, D, E, F, L & K batteries were sent back to Midway Island via USS Kitty Hawk, they arrived at Midway on 26 March and would take part in the Battle of Midway on 4–5 June 1942. Following the fighting at Midway the detachment returned to Hawaii on 15 June 1942. At this time the 3’ AA Group was re-designated as the 90mm Group and the Machine Gun Group was re-designated as the Machine Gun Group. Searchlight battery was made part of the 90mm Group at this time. After the reorganization, the battalion spent most of July 1942 preparing for future offensive amphibious operations.

On 21 July 1942 the battalion embarked upon USS Betelgeuse heading for Guadalcanal. On 7 August 1942, the 3d Defense Battalion, landed along with the 1st Marine Division's on Guadalcanal, they participated in the defense of the island against numerous Japanese counterattacks over the ensuing months. The battalions Machine Gun and Antiaircraft artillery units were able to get ashore immediately however the seacoast artillery units were not able to establish themselves until the end of August. 3d Defense Battalion troops on USS Zeilin were disembarked at Tulagi while USS Betelgeuse off-loaded Marines on Guadalcanal. During these early stages of the battle, 3d Defense Battalion was tasked with providing air and coastal defense for the nascent Marine Corps beachhead surrounding Henderson Field; the battalion participated in the month's long struggle for control of the island. In mid-October, during the main Japanese counter-offensive, the battalion was assigned defensive responsibilities along the Lunga River.

During this time they scored several direct hits against Japanese shipping that wandered too close to their guns. The battalion, less the 5” Battery on Tulagi, departed Guadalcanal on 9 February 1943 on board USS George Clymer sailing for New Zealand, they disembarked at Wellington, New Zealand on 16 February 1943 and headed for Camp Solway near Masterton. The battalion remained in New Zealand until September 1943 focusing on rest and training. On 12 September 1943 the ba