Photos That Shows The Transformation Of Enugu Since 1960

Enugu is located in the South Eastern part of Nigeria, with an estimated population of over 3 million people. Enugu is the administrative and political centre of the Igbo ethnic group of Nigeria. Enugu is pronounced as Enu Ugwu, meaning ‘hill top’, and this is because of the hilly landscape of the city.

Without the discovery of coal in the grounds of Enugu hills, Enugu wouldn’t have evolved to what it is today. The discovery of coal led to the construction of the 243km railway that links to Enugu with Portharcourt, this brought rapid development to Enugu. The Eastern rail made it possible for the pushing of coal from Enugu to Port Harcourt, and from Portharcourt, they usually shipped it to the UK.

Enugu became an administrative capital of the Eastern Region in the year 1938, and this attracted many coal miners to Enugu city. By 1958, over 8000 men were mining coal in Enugu, with majority of them from Udi, which is a nearby town. After the independence of Nigeria from Great Britain, Enugu rose to become the capital of the Eastern region of Nigeria. She was declared as the capital of the defunct Republic of Biafra on May 30, 1967. All the pictures you see are pictures that show the rich history of Enugu.