courtesy of Archives of Ontario
Mining a silver vein: Nippissing Mine, Cobalt 1910
The Rush The discovery of silver provided a catalyst for enormous growth in this small outpost. A new town quickly emerged in hastily- built houses organised haphazardly amongst the mines. It was truly a camp and over the years spread itself across the rocky outcroppings with little planning. The only boundaries were defined by claims staked as prospectors established their operations. Miners’ shacks gradually replaced prospector’s tents and the town spread. Such was the speed of development and lack of planning that an electric streetcar line ran between Cobalt and the nearby town of Haileybury passed directly through some of the mine sites. Headframes were the town’s highrises and provided a constant reminder of its industry. The excitement and energy of hardworking miners, prospectors and businessmen made for a lively and energetic place. Hotels, taverns and even a hockey team in the National Hockey Association, later the NHL, provided entertainment for those with newfound riches.
The prospect of extracting more silver at increasingly rapid rates led to the development of new hard rock mining technology and techniques, providing expertise for future exploration in northern Ontario and the establishment of a mining college in nearby Haileybury. Local innovations fed the rapid growth and energy demands of both the town and mines: three new hydroelectric plants were constructed to replace coal-fired plants, and to feed power for ever-hungry mines and mills, the first compressed air plant was constructed at nearby Ragged Chutes supplying compressed air by pipeline.
19
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator