"The Mining Engineer looks on.": Living and Working in the Mining Field
In his years as a stationary engineer, Arthur worked on mines all across Canada. He captured some of the arduous processes behind the development of mines, and whether he was travelling hundreds of miles with tonnes of machinery in tow or working a thousand feet below the surface, Arthur was sure to bring his camera along to photograph his experience.
Gold mining drove the settlement and growth of the Red Lake area, and Arthur depicts the work of developing these mines in his album.
Mining development in the north requires the transportation of large amounts of heavy equipment and supplies across vast expanses. Arthur notes the ventures as being challenging, the conditions being "something that words just fail to describe".
These are some of the earliest photos showing mining development that Arthur was able to take: the very preliminary work of felling trees, clearing land, removing rocks, and stripping the mine shaft sites.
The construction of a mining head frame at an unnamed mine is pictured here. The head frame acts as a sort of elevator for equipment, resources extracted, and people who travel up and down into the depths of the mine.
We also get a peek into the differences of commodity prices in the rural North versus urban centres, when Arthur notes diesel fuel being priced at 56 cents on the gallon, as opposed to the typical 12.5 cents "on the outside". This was in the 1930s!
Arthur's knowledge of mining technology and engineering is apparent in this set of photos, where he elaborates further on the laying of water and air lines to the mine shaft and the final stages of completing construction on a head frame.
The mining process requires a variety of professionals, and in these photos, Arthur highlights the shaft sinking crew (comprised of about 15 individuals) and a geologist identified as "Dr Hicks." The shaft sinking crew is responsible for drilling, blasting, and the removal of rock. The geologist would likely have been responsible for analysing maps and data to make inferences regarding the whereabouts and types of mineral deposits.
Another large part of the mine development process appears to be making room for the mine site to expand, as Arthur captures many photos of the mine's blacksmith surrounded by felled trees (page 25, photo 3).
These photos are captioned with Arthur's notes on the mining process and results. The first two of the photos on this page note that getting the mine up and running is the first step before working on any infrastructure.
Here we see some of the equipment Arthur was likely to work on as a stationary engineer. A stationary engineer acts an operator and maintainer of various industrial machinery. Diesel engines, boilers, filters, and pumps are just some of the machines Arthur would have encountered in the mining business.
A few shots from the highest point of the mine (the top of the headframe) are taken, and not a few photos later we can also see Arthur at the bottom of the mine, looking up at a few colleagues.
Local timber was also used in mine construction, and we can see felled trees being processed for the construction of mine instrastructure and buildings. On page 27, photo 6, Arthur notes the effects of using "green lumber" for building- green lumber is moisture filled lumber that, when dried, contracts and leaves the gaps in between planks.
To operate a large mine, you need energy. Here we see the construction process of the electric transmission line in Ear Falls, Ontario.
Some more of the machinery used in a mine: named specifically by Arthur in his captioning.
Miscellaneous photos showing the different houses Arthur lived in while mining, the machines he worked on, and the mines he worked in.
Arthur highlights the steps of building a dock in this series of pictures.
Marine portaging and the expansion of the Howey Mill in Red Lake, Ontario, which extracted gold and operated from 1930 to 1941.
Building bridges to access Little Long Lac Gold Mine from the mainland. This mine operated near Geraldton, Ontario and ran from 1934 to 1956.
Here we see the dewatering process required in mines, wherein ground water is removed so as to avoid unsafe mining and the inhibition of the mining process.
Two interesting pages placed side by side in the photo album: the first shows a completed headframe at a newly developed mine, and the second shows the remnants of an abandoned mine in the Lake of the Woods, Ontario area, which Arthur notes as having been abandoned some time prior to 1900.
These pages show a series of 11 photos where we see the collapse of a dam in Nellie Lake, Northern Ontario.
The first four photos (as seen on page 70) offer a glimpse of what the dam looked like during the construction phase of the project.
The next set of photos (as seen on page 71) shows the dam just minutes before collapse, where you can see the water rushing over the top of the dam.
The final set of photos (as seen on page 72) shows us what was left after the water had settled. Amidst all the debris, you can see where the infrastructure was washed away by the river.
Some of the final few pages of the album feature photos taken from the skies above mines all across Canada, inlcuding
- Noranda Mines in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec
- Siscoe Gold Mines in Val d'Or, Quebec
- The Jackson-Manion Mine in the Red Lake Region, Ontario
- Knee Lake Gold Mine in Knee Lake, Manitoba
- Howey Gold Mines in Red Lake, Ontario
Some final insights into life working in the mining field in the 1920s to 1930s.