Copper Belt
Encyclopedia
The Copper Belt or Copperbelt (usually spelled as one word) is the copper
mining area of Central Africa
which runs in Zambia
(Copperbelt Province
) and Democratic Republic of Congo (Katanga Province
). This area gave name to the Copperbelt Province, around the towns of Ndola
, Kitwe
, Chingola
, Luanshya
and Mufulira
. In some contexts it excludes the Katangan
Copperbelt of the Democratic Republic of Congo, around Lubumbashi
.
, who in 1895 led and oversaw the massive Northern Territories (BSA) Exploration Co. expedition which established that major copper deposits existed in Central Africa. Along the Kafue River
in then Northern Rhodesia
, Burnham saw many similarities to copper deposits he had worked in the United States
, and he encountered natives wearing copper bracelets. In his report to the British South Africa Company
Burnham had this to say about the region:
Many years later, the British South Africa Company
built towns along the river a railroad to transport the copper through Mozambique
.
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
mining area of Central Africa
Central Africa
Central Africa is a core region of the African continent which includes Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda....
which runs in Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
(Copperbelt Province
Copperbelt Province
Copperbelt Province in Zambia covers the mineral-rich Copperbelt, and farming and bush areas to the south. It was the backbone of the Northern Rhodesian economy during British colonial rule and fuelled the hopes of the immediate post-independence period, but its economic importance was severely...
) and Democratic Republic of Congo (Katanga Province
Katanga Province
Katanga Province is one of the provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Between 1971 and 1997, its official name was Shaba Province. Under the new constitution, the province was to be replaced by four smaller provinces by February 2009; this did not actually take place.Katanga's regional...
). This area gave name to the Copperbelt Province, around the towns of Ndola
Ndola
Ndola is the third largest city in Zambia, with a population of 495,000 . It is the industrial, commercial, on the Copperbelt, Zambia's copper-mining region, and capital of Copperbelt Province. It is also the commercial capital city of Zambia and has one of the three international airports, others...
, Kitwe
Kitwe
Kitwe is the second largest city in terms of size and population in Zambia. With a population of 547,700 Kitwe is one of the most developed commercial and industrial areas in the nation, alongside Ndola and Lusaka...
, Chingola
Chingola
Chingola is a city in Zambia's Copperbelt Province, the country's copper-mining region, with a population of 157,340 . It is the home of Nchanga Copper Mine, a deep-shaft high-grade content copper mining operation, which subsequently led to the development of two open pit operations, Chingola...
, Luanshya
Luanshya
Luanshya is a town in Zambia, in the Copperbelt Province near Ndola. It has a population of 117,579 .Luanshya was founded in the early part of the 20th century after a prospector/explorer, William Collier, shot and killed a Roan Antelope on the banks of the Luanshya River, discovering a copper...
and Mufulira
Mufulira
Mufulira is a town in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia. It grew up in the 1930s around the site of the Mufulira Copper Mine on its north-western edge...
. In some contexts it excludes the Katangan
Katanga Province
Katanga Province is one of the provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Between 1971 and 1997, its official name was Shaba Province. Under the new constitution, the province was to be replaced by four smaller provinces by February 2009; this did not actually take place.Katanga's regional...
Copperbelt of the Democratic Republic of Congo, around Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi is the second largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, second only to the nation's capital Kinshasa, and the hub of the southeastern part of the country. The copper-mining city serves as the capital of the relatively prosperous Katanga Province, lying near the Zambian border...
.
History
The discovery of copper in Zambia by the Western world is owed partly to the celebrated American scout Frederick Russell BurnhamFrederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham, DSO was an American scout and world traveling adventurer known for his service to the British Army in colonial Africa and for teaching woodcraft to Robert Baden-Powell, thus becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement.Burnham...
, who in 1895 led and oversaw the massive Northern Territories (BSA) Exploration Co. expedition which established that major copper deposits existed in Central Africa. Along the Kafue River
Kafue River
The Kafue River sustains one of the world's great wildlife environments. It is a major tributary of the Zambezi, and of Zambia's principal rivers, it is the most central and the most urban, and the longest and largest lying wholly within Zambia....
in then Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa, formed in 1911. It became independent in 1964 as Zambia.It was initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by amalgamating North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia...
, Burnham saw many similarities to copper deposits he had worked in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and he encountered natives wearing copper bracelets. In his report to the British South Africa Company
British South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd., receiving a royal charter in 1889...
Burnham had this to say about the region:
About 200 miles north of the FallsVictoria FallsThe Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe.-Introduction:...
on the Incalla river, and twelve miles from the Kafukwe (Ed: now known as the Kafue RiverKafue RiverThe Kafue River sustains one of the world's great wildlife environments. It is a major tributary of the Zambezi, and of Zambia's principal rivers, it is the most central and the most urban, and the longest and largest lying wholly within Zambia....
) and still on the high plateau is probably one of the greatest copper fields on the continent. The natives have worked this ore for ages, as can be seen by their old dumps, and they work it to-day. The field is very extensive, and reaches away to Katanga... The natives inhabiting this part of the country are skilled workmen, and have traded their handiwork with all comers, even as far afield as the Portugese of the West Coast and the Arabs of the East. These natives, being miners and workers of copper and iron, and being permanently located in the ground, would give the very element needed in developing these fields.
The increasing use of copper bids fair to make it one of the most valuable products a country can have.... The copper mines of MontanaMontanaMontana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
and ArizonaArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
have proven of more value than the gold mines, regardless of the fact that the copper had to be hauled two thousand miles by rail to the seaboard, and the coal and coke to smelt it hauled hundreds of miles to the mines. So far as natural difficulties are concerned, this northern field can be fed from the coal deposits of the valley of the ZambeziZambeziThe Zambezi is the fourth-longest river in Africa, and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. The area of its basin is , slightly less than half that of the Nile...
(Ed: Burnham had previously discovered the massive coal fields at HwangeHwangeHwange is a town in western Zimbabwe, in the province of Matabeleland North. It is named after the chieftain of Zwange, who is now called Chief Hwange. The town was known as Wankie until 1982. According to the 1992 Population Census, the town had a population of 42,581...
), and the product shipped to the East Coast at a less expense than the product of Montana and Arizona can be laid on the dock at New YorkNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Many years later, the British South Africa Company
British South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd., receiving a royal charter in 1889...
built towns along the river a railroad to transport the copper through Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
.