Perhaps one of the greatest boosts to the economy of a small community, St. Lawrence was that of mining. For numerous years mining fluorspar kept many of the citizens of this town employed.
Fluorspar is the only ore produced in the St. Lawrence area. It occurs in fissures in the grantile or in the rhyolite faces of the granite. The veins are persistent for great lengths and several of them have wide lenses. The area with veins of known workable size comprises about 60 square miles and in the area a number of known fluorspar veins of possible economic value.
The first official recognition of fluorspar in the area was recorded by geologist, J.B. Jukes in 1843. He noted an occurrence of "galena" or lead ore and fluorite of lime on the west side of St. Lawrence harbour. It is recorded that interest in the commercial mining of fluorspar began in 1928 with the first ore being extracted in 1933. Eventually at Iron Springs Mine, the shafts reached depths of 970 feet.
In 1933, William Seibert cleverly opened up the first fluorspar min, upon Black Duck vein, that the province had ever seen. It was during this time that our economy was in an extremely poor state due to the depression, the Tidal Wave and low fish prices. Naturally, the residents of St. Lawrence saw the birth of this industry as an excellent opportunity to support themselves on the fifteen cents per hour Seibert had assured them. Workers from all over, not just in St. Lawrence, saw this and came here in hopes of getting a share in this new venture.
Eventually, veins in Blue Beach, Tarefare, and Director became the sites for mining as well. Men younger than twenty-five years of age and older than fifty-five worked hard to extract the fluorspar, which would be exported to American markets, until tragedy struck around 1978.
The discovery was made that, for years, these dedicated men had been slaving in the presence of radioactive gasses and as a result, many died, or were dying of radiation induced cancer. The dry-hammer method of drilling created constant dust. The smoke and grit filled the lungs of the miners along with the lack of oxygen in the shafts caused them great difficulty in breathing. Miners were getting sick, some with tuberculosis, still more with lung cancer. By the 1950's when the issue was brought to the attention of the Department of Health, it was already too late for hundreds of miners who had been exposed for so long to the deadly radon gas. This, along with competition from mines in Mexico, who were selling their fluorspar at a lower price, caused our industry to fold. Numerous people were without jobs, which resulted in moving away of many families in search of employment.
The mining potential was seen and the industry began again. From 1984 to 1990 the mine was operated by a firm based out of the United Kingdom, Minworth PLC. This mine, employed 140 staff members again, many hourly paid workers. The joy brought about by this industry was felt in St. Lawrence with the handing out of jobs again and people were happily becoming less dependent on the government’s financial assistance.
Unfortunately, as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. Once more, the mine in St. Lawrence shut down. The American markets began buying fluorspar from Chinese, who were selling for one third of the price we had been selling for. Eventually, as were many other mines for this reason, the min in St. Lawrence was left no other choice but to close.
Prospectors say that there is still plenty of fluorspar yet to be mined at the old sites. In fact, they say that there is enough to ensure prosperous mining for up to twenty-five years. However, due to enormous lack of funds, the mine is unable to be reopened as of now. With regard to the mining in St. Lawrence, one thing is for certain – the economic stated of this community was much more stable when our mine was in full operation. Perhaps, with funding, proper management and a little luck, we might reach that stability once more.
St. Lawrence Miners Museum
The Historical Origins of an Industrial Disaster: Occupational Health and Labour Relations at the Fluorspar Mines, St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, 1933-1945. Author: Rick Rennie
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