People from the late Iron Age, which ended with the Difaqane (mid-nineteenth century), left terraced stone-walled complexes (as are also found in other parts of southern Africa).

A long time ago .......
The first immigrants to the eastern part of the escarpment belonged to the Basutu-Bafadi (a Sesotho speaking group), who had moved southwards along the interior plateau.  Simultaneously, Nguni speaking groups were moving southwards, east of the Lebombo mountains. One of these groups was the Swazi, who settled in what is now known as Swaziland after eliminating most of the Basuto-Bafadi groups they encountered there.  The remaining Basuto then fled back northeast to form the Ba-ka-Ngomane.  They were eventually defeated and/or absorbed by consecutive raiding Zulu, Swazi and Shangaan warring parties in the 1820's.

One of the Sesotho speaking groups - of the MaPai tribe - under chief Lesisi first found refuge in the caves near MacMac, before fleeing to Sekukuniland (Steelpoort area) under the control of chief Sekwan.  When this group decided to return to the Sabie river area in 1882, they found that the area had been populated by Europeans after the discovery of gold at MacMac and Pilgrim's Rest in 1873.

Then came the white man ......
Due to it's high altitude the area has always been malaria-free.  For this reason pioneers in days of old used the area for their base camps when hunting and exploring down into the Lowveld.  The river was often in flood and teemed with crocodiles, hence the local Shangaan people called it uluSaba - "the river of fear".  It is from this Shangaan word that the town's name was derived.

During a hunting expedition in 1871, led by the famous hunter - Henry Thomas Glynn - a stray bullet chipped a rock and revealed a rich gold reef.  This started a gold-rush into the area and soon many indigenous forests were destroyed to supply firewood and later mine props.

Fortunately the far-sighted Joseph Brook Shires realized that man-made forests would be necessary.   He planted the first commercial trees in 1876 and today Sabie is surrounded by one of the world's largest man-made forests.

During the depression years (1929 to 1932) the Government launched vast afforestation schemes in the area with a view to providing employment to thousands of farmers who had succumbed under the 14 years drought and the world financial collapse of 1929.

In 1906 the inhabitants of Pilgrim's Rest voluntarily forfeited their township and fiscal rights, which were given to Sabie instead.   On 24th September 1915 the first health committee met for the first time in Sabie under the chairmanship of H.T. Glynn.  Sabie was officially proclaimed a health committee area on 1st January 1916 and eight years later (on 1st January 1924) Sabie was proclaimed a village council.

Recommended books about the history of the area:

• Pioneers of the Lowveld.  By Hans Bornman.  ISBN 0-9583165-8-9
• Valley of Gold.  By A.P. Cartwright.  ISBN 0 86978 043 3
• Jock of the Bushveld.  By Sir Percy Fitzpatrick