1904 in South Africa

Incumbents

• Governor of the Cape of Good Hope and High Commissioner for Southern Africa:Walter Hely-Hutchinson.
• Governor of the Colony of Natal: Henry Edward McCallum.
• Prime Minister of the Cape of Good Hope: John Gordon Sprigg, Leander Starr Jameson.
• Prime Minister of the Orange River Colony: Alfred Milner.
• Prime Minister of the Colony of Natal: George Morris Sutton.

  Events

• Pneumonic plague breaks out in Johannesburg.

• 22 - The first of 62,000 Chinese labourers arrive in South Africa to relieve the shortage of unskilled mine workers.

• The Social Democratic Federation is established in Cape Town.

  Births

• 16 February - Philip Rabinowitz, South African record breaking sprinter.

  Deaths

• 3 June - Vincent Tancred, South African cricketer.
• 14 July - Paul Kruger, exiled president of the South African Republic, dies in Clarens, Switzerland at the age of 78.
• 1 November - Willem Eduard Bok, politician,

  Railways

Railway lines opened

• 1 February - Cape Western - Maitland to Ottery,.
• 1 March - Cape Midland - Le Roux to Oudtshoorn,.
• 7 June - Cape Western - Paarl to Franschhoek,.
• 15 June - Free State - Thaba 'Nchu to Modderpoort,.
• 17 August - Cape Eastern - Indwe to Xalanga,.
• 1 September - Free State - Hamilton to Tempe,.
• 7 September - Cape Eastern - Amabele to Komga,.
• 17 October - Cape Eastern - Middledrift to Adelaide,.
• 3 November - Natal - Pietermaritzburg to Elandskop,.
• December - Cape Western - Artois to Ceres Road,.
• 15 December - Transvaal - Langlaagte to Vereeniging,.

  Locomotives

• Four new Cape gauge locomotive types enter service on the Cape Government Railways :
• * Two experimental superheated 6th Class 4-6-0 locomotives. In 1912 they will be designated South African Class 6L 4-6-0| by the South African Railways.
• * Four Karoo Class 4-6-2| Pacific passenger steam locomotives. In 1912 they will be designated South African Class 5B 4-6-2| by the SAR.
• * The last eight 8th Class 2-8-0 Consolidation type locomotives. In 1912 they will be designated Class 8Z on the SAR.
• * The final batch of ten 8th Class 4-8-0| Mastodon type locomotives. In 1912 they will be designated Class 8F on the SAR.
• Six "Type B" 4-6-0 steam locomotives enter service on the Avontuur narrow gauge line in the Langkloof.
• A single 0-4-2 inverted saddle-tank locomotive named Caledonia is placed in service by the Cape Copper Company as a shunting engine at O'okiep in the Cape Colony.

• Two new Cape gauge locomotive types enter service on the Natal Government Railways :
• * Twenty-five Class E Mountain type tank locomotives. In 1912 they will become the Class G on the SAR.
• * Fifty Class B 4-8-0| Mastodon type mainline steam locomotives. In 1912 they will be designated South African Class 1 4-8-0| on the SAR.
• The Natal Harbours Department places a single saddle-tank locomotive named Sir Albert in service as dock shunter in Durban Harbour.

• Five new Cape gauge locomotive types enter service on the Central South African Railways :
• * Five Class 9 4-6-2| Pacific type locomotives.
• * Fifteen Class 10 4-6-2| Pacific passenger locomotives.
• * Thirty-six Class 11 2-8-2| Mikado type locomotives.
• * Eight Class F 4-6-4T| Baltic type tank locomotives in suburban service between Springs and Randfontein.
• * A single experimental 0-6-0+0-6-0| Class M Kitson-Meyer type articulated steam locomotive.
• The CSAR rebuilds most of its Reid Tenwheeler tank locomotives to 4-8-0| tank-and-tender locomotives. In 1912 these converted locomotives will be designated Class 13 on the SAR.