1874 in South Africa

The following lists events that happened during 1874 in South Africa.

Incumbents

 * Governor of the Cape of Good Hope and High Commissioner for Southern Africa: Sir Henry Barkly.
 * Lieutenant-governor of the Colony of Natal: Sir Benjamin Pine.
 * State President of the Orange Free State: Jan Brand.
 * State President of the South African Republic: Thomas François Burgers.
 * Lieutenant-Governor of Griqualand West: Sir Richard Southey.
 * Prime Minister of the Cape of Good Hope: Sir John Molteno.

Events

 * May
 * 27 – The first group of Dorsland Trekkers departs from Pretoria to settle in Angola, led by Gert Alberts.


 * Unknown date
 * Work begins on the Cape Parliamentary buildings (the current South African houses of Parliament).
 * The Cape Government passes legislation to begin government funding of education and colleges.
 * The South African Teachers' Association is established in the Cape.
 * The railway line from Port Elizabeth to Uitenhage is partially opened.
 * Work is begun on the Verlatenkloof pass, connecting the town of Sutherland with the southern Cape.
 * The Molteno Government of the Cape passes a parliamentary act to redraw the provincial boundaries of the Cape Colony, from two provinces (Eastern and Western Cape) to seven.
 * The Molteno Regulations establish the South African public library system.
 * The Burgerspond, the South African Republic's first coin, is introduced.

Births

 * 4 July? – Moloko Temo, South African supercentenarian. (d. 2009)

Locomotives

 * A single 0-4-0 saddle-tank locomotive is placed in railway construction service on the Midland System of the Cape Government Railways.
 * A third locomotive enters service on breakwater construction work at Table Bay Harbour, a 7 ft Brunel gauge 0-4-0 side-tank engine built by Fletcher, Jennings & Co.