Springhill Coal Mining National Historic Site

Last updated
Springhill Coal Mining
Nova Scotia Coal Fields
Springhill Mine 1.jpg
An entrance to a Springhill mining shaft
Location Springhill, Nova Scotia, Canada
Coordinates 45°38′41″N64°3′55″W / 45.64472°N 64.06528°W / 45.64472; -64.06528 (Springhill Coal Mining)
Built1873 [1] [2] [3]
Current useMuseum
Governing body Parks Canada
Official name: Springhill Coal Mining National Historic Site of Canada
Designated12 March 1998

Springhill Coal Mining is a National Historic Site of Canada located on the corner of Industrial Park Drive and Memorial Crescent in Springhill, Nova Scotia. [1] [2] [3] The Historic Site, designated in 1998, consists of a museum and the land that once contained the Springhill Coal Mines. [1] [2] Springhill was once one of the most important coalfields in Canada, along with those in Pictou and Cape Breton. Springhill coal was shipped and marketed throughout the Maritimes and Quebec. [2] [3] The surviving mining features in Springhill are among the most complete in Canada. [1] The Springhill Mines were made infamous by a number of disasters that occurred underground, including the 1891 explosion, the 1956 explosion and the 1958 bump. [1]

Springhill, Nova Scotia Community in Nova Scotia, Canada

Springhill is a community located in central Cumberland County, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Pictou Town in Nova Scotia, Canada

Pictou is a town in Pictou County, in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Located on the north shore of Pictou Harbour, the town is approximately 10 km north of the larger town of New Glasgow.

Springhill mining disaster

Springhill mining disaster may refer to any of three Canadian mining disasters that occurred in 1891, 1956, and 1958 in different mines within the Springhill coalfield, near the town of Springhill in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia.

Contents

History

A mineshaft underground in Springhill Springhill Mine 3.jpg
A mineshaft underground in Springhill

Springhill played a large part in the Nova Scotia coal mining boom from the 1870s to the 1940s. Springhill coal, along with coal from Pictou and Cape Breton, was shipped and sold throughout the Maritimes and Quebec, the revenue from which helped industrialize Nova Scotia's economy. [1] Local mining operations were developed with the expansion of the Intercolonial Railway in the early 1900s, [4] which spawned the Cumberland Coal Company. [1] Mining operations depended heavily on highly skilled miners working in perilous underground conditions that were prone to explosions and underground earthquakes, as evidenced by the multiple disasters. [1] In 1891 and 1956, coal dust explosions rocked the mine and resulted in many fatalities; in 1958 an underground earthquake, or "bump", caused sections of the mine to collapse. [3] [1] [2] [5] The site's historical value is due to Springhill's high importance in the industrialization of post-Confederation Nova Scotia and Canada in general. Nova Scotia was Canada's largest coal producer from 1867 until 1914, [1] partially due to tariffs on foreign coal in Canada and the high demand for coal in other provinces in the late 1800s. [1] After the two disasters in the 1950s, operations were downscaled and the mine officially closed in 1970. [6] All that remains of the original mine is several brick buildings and the sealed pitheads for the No. 2 and No. 4 mines, with the Syndicate Mine entrance remaining open for the museum. The mine was designated a National Historic Site of Canada on March 12 1998, [3] along with the coal mining sites in Stellarton and Sydney, Nova Scotia. [3] [2] [1]

Canadian Confederation process by which the British colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into one Dominion of Canada on July 1, 1867

Canadian Confederation was the process by which the British colonies of the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into one federation, Canada, on July 1, 1867. Upon confederation, the old province of Canada was divided into Ontario and Quebec; along with Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, the new federation thus comprised four provinces. Over the years since Confederation, Canada has seen numerous territorial changes and expansions, resulting in the current union of ten provinces and three territories.

Stellarton Town in Nova Scotia, Canada

Stellarton is a town located in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It is adjacent and to the south of the larger town of New Glasgow. In pioneer times the area was called Coal Mines Station, and from 1833 until 1870, it was known as Albion Mines. The town was incorporated as Stellarton in 1889 and owes its name to a specific type of torbanite which came to be known as "stellarite" because of the "stars of fire" given off by its sparky flame.

Sydney, Nova Scotia Urban Community in Nova Scotia, Canada

Sydney is an urban community located in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. Situated on Cape Breton Island's east coast, it belongs administratively to the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Sydney was founded in 1785 by the British, was incorporated as a city in 1904, and dissolved on 1 August 1995, when it was amalgamated into the regional municipality.

Museum

The National Historic Site is centred around a one-storey red brick building that was once used as a lamp cabin for the miners. [3] The museum commemorates the tragedies of the mine and the heroics of the miners during the disasters as well as the history of prosperity brought by coal mining to Springhill. [7] The museum offers tours of the wash house and the lamp cabin as well as a tour of a remaining part of the underground mine. [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Springhill Coal Mining National Historic Site of Canada". www.pc.gc.ca. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Springhill Coal Mining - Springhill, NS - Atlantic Canada Heritage Properties on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "HistoricPlaces.ca - HistoricPlaces.ca". www.historicplaces.ca. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  4. ↑ "Intercolonial Railway". www.canada-rail.com. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  5. ↑ "ARCHIVED - Springhill Mining Disasters - Earth - SOS! Canadian Disasters - Library and Archives Canada". www.collectionscanada.ca. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  6. ↑ Archives, Nova Scotia (6 December 2005). "Nova Scotia Archives - Men in the Mines". novascotia.ca. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  7. 1 2 "Springhill Miners Museum - Springhill, NS - History Museums on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
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