← 1859 1858 1857 1860 in South Africa → 1861 1862 1863
Decades:	1840s 1850s 1860s 1870s 1880s
See also:	List of years in South Africa

The following lists events that happened during 1860 in South Africa.

Incumbents

• Governor of the Cape of Good Hope and High Commissioner for Southern Africa: Sir George Grey.^[1][2]
• Lieutenant-governor of the Colony of Natal: John Scott.
• State President of the Orange Free State:
  • Esaias Reynier Snijman (acting until 7 February).^[3]
  • Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (from 8 February).^[3]
• President of the Executive Council of the South African Republic:
  • Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (until 14 September).^[4]
  • Johannes Hermanus Grobler (acting from 15 September until 5 December).^[4]
  • Stephanus Schoeman (acting from 6 December).^[4]

Events

February

• 8 – Marthinus Wessel Pretorius becomes State President of the Orange Free State.^[3]

May

• 1 – The seat of the South African Republic (ZAR) government is officially transferred from Potchefstroom to Pretoria.
• 4 – The Orange Free State signs a peace treaty with Moshoeshoe I at Wittebergen, near Winburg, ending the first Basuto War.

June

• 26 – The Natal Railway Company officially opens the first revenue-earning railway line in South Africa, a 2 miles (3.2 kilometres) line from Market Square in Durban to the newly built Point station at Durban Harbour.^[5]

September

• 15 – Johannes Hermanus Grobler becomes acting President of the Executive Council of the South African Republic.^[4]
• 17 – The Alfred Dock in Table Bay, Cape Town is officially opened by sixteen-year-old Prince Alfred, second son of Queen Victoria.

December

• 6 – Stephanus Schoeman unconstitutionally ousts J.H. Grobler as acting President of the Executive Council of the South African Republic.^[4]

Unknown date

• The first indenture of Indian workers arrive in Natal to work in the sugar industry.
• The first telegraph service in South Africa starts operating between Cape Town and Simonstown.
• The penny post is started in Cape Town.

Births

• 29 April – John Robinson Royston, soldier and farmer, is born in Durban.

Deaths

Railways

Railway lines opened

• 26 June – Natal – Durban to Point, 2 miles (3.2 kilometres).^[6]

Locomotives

• 20 March – The Cape Town Railway and Dock Company takes delivery of eight broad gauge 0-4-2 tender locomotives for service on the Cape Town-Wellington line, which is still under construction.^[5]
• 13 May – The Natal Railway Company's first locomotive, the broad gauge engine "Natal", is landed at Durban.^[5]