The Hillbrow Tower decorated for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The Hillbrow Tower (formerly JG Strijdom Tower) is a tall tower located in the suburb of HillbrowinJohannesburg, South Africa. At 269 m (883 ft), it was the tallest structure and towerinAfrica for 50 years, until it was surpassed in 2021 by the 393.8 m (1,292 ft) Iconic Tower in Egypt's New Administrative Capital. For seven years it was also the tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere until 1978, when surpassed by the 270 m Mount Isa Chimney in Queensland, Australia. It remains the tallest telecommunications tower in Africa, and the tallest structure in sub-Saharan Africa. Construction of the tower began in June 1968 and was completed three years later, in April 1971. Construction cost 2 million rand[1] (at the time, US$2.8 million). The tower was initially known as the JG Strijdom Tower, after JG (Hans) Strijdom, South African Prime Minister from 1954 to 1958. On 31 May 2005 it was renamed the Telkom Joburg Tower.[3]
| Telkom Joburg Tower | |
|---|---|
Hillbrow Tower
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Hillbrow Tower (right) with the Ponte Apartment building and the skyline of Hillbrow.
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 | |
| Record height | |
| Tallest in Africa from 1971 to 2021[I] | |
| Surpassed by | Iconic Tower |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Radio tower |
| Location | Hillbrow, Johannesburg,  South Africa |
| Coordinates | 26°11′13″S 28°2′57″E / 26.18694°S 28.04917°E / -26.18694; 28.04917 |
| Construction started | 1968[1] |
| Completed | 1971[1] |
| Opening | 1971; 53 years ago (1971)[1] |
| Cost | $10,000,000 |
| Owner | Telkom (South Africa)[2] |
| Height | |
| Antenna spire | 269 m (883 ft) |
| Top floor | 204 m (669 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Lifts/elevators | 3 |
| References | |
| [1][2][3][4] | |
The tower was constructed for South African Posts & Telecommunications, which later became Telkom,[4] South Africa's government-run and largest telecommunications company. As the general height of buildings rose in the central business district, it became necessary that the height of the new telecommunications tower stayed above the height of the buildings surrounding it.[1][2]
The Hillbrow Tower has been closed to visitors since 1981, primarily for security reasons. Before the closure, the Hillbrow tower was one of the largest tourist draws in Johannesburg. The public was able to enter six public floors at the top of the tower. One of the floors housed a popular revolving restaurant named "Heinrich's Restaurant" and a discotheque named "Cloud 9" as well as another non-rotating restaurant known as "the Grill Room" and the observation floor which was at 197 m height.[5]
During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, a huge football was fitted to the tower to celebrate the event. In 2013, television programme Carte Blanche broadcast from what used to be the revolving restaurant.
The Hillbrow Tower is one of two iconic towers that are often used to identify the Johannesburg skyline. The second tower, the Sentech Tower (old Albert Hertzog Tower), is used for television and radio transmissions.[1][2][3][4]
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Tallest free-standing structure in Africa 269 m (883 ft) 1971 – 1979 |
Succeeded by Chimney of Secunda CTL |
| Tallest telecommunications tower in Africa 269 m (883 ft) 1971 – present |
Incumbent | |