The monument stands in a traffic island at the corner of Booysens Road and Trump Street, Selby, neatly enclosed by a low fence. It takes the form of an obelisk , approximately 2.3m high, made of black granite with a sandstone base.
Erected by the management of the Ferreira Deep Mining Company in memory of its many employees who paid the supreme sacrifice in World War 1. Date of erection unknown, but mention was made in the Rand Daily Mail of an injury to a person transporting the monument on 4 February 1933.
Protected under Section 37 of the National Heritage Resources Act (Public Monuments and Memorials). “Public monuments and memorials must, without the need to publish a notice to this effect, be protected in the same manner as places which are entered in a heritage register …”. Since the Selby War Memorial is older than 60 years, it is also protected in terms of Section 34 of the same Act.
A culmination of research gathered over many years, the Online Johannesburg Heritage Register is being launched on Nelson Mandela Day 18 July 2025.
Among the many heritage sites featured is Chancellor House, the downtown offices of Mandela and Tambo Attorneys in the 1950s. After having been vacant and shuttered for more than a decade, this iconic building is being revived and brought to life once again as offices for the Community Development Department, which oversees the City’s Arts, Culture & Heritage Services.
