Mining Country

A history of Canada’s mines and miners

by John Sandlos and Arn Keeling

Mining Country offers the stories of Canadian miners from past and present, from pre-settlement aboriginal mines to the development of Vancouver and Toronto as centres of global mining finance.

Mining has had a significant presence in every part of Canada — from the east to west coasts to the far north. This book tells the stories of those who built Canada’s mining industry. It highlights the experiences of the people who lived and worked in mining towns across the country, the rise of major mining companies, and the emergence of Toronto and Vancouver as centres of global mining finance. It also addresses the devastating effects mining has had on Indigenous communities and their land and documents several high-profile resistance efforts.

Mining Country presents fascinating snapshots of Canadian mining past and present, from pre-contact Indigenous copper mining and trading networks to the famous Cariboo and Klondike Gold Rushes. Generously illustrated with more than 150 visuals drawn from every period of mining history, this book offers a thorough account of the story behind the industry.

About the Authors

John Sandlos
John Sandlos
Arn Keeling
Arn Keeling

JOHN SANDLOS is a professor of history at Memorial University of Newfoundland, with a research focus on the history of abandoned mines in Northern Canada. He is the author of Hunters at the Margin and co-editor (with Arn Keeling) of Mining and Communities in Northern Canada: History, Politics, Memory. He lives in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.

ARN KEELING is a professor of geography at Memorial University of Newfoundland. His research examines the environmental legacies of abandoned mines, mine closure and remediation, and the social issues surrounding environmental contamination and its effects on northern Indigenous communities. He co-directed the Toxic Legacies Project with John Sandlos, conducting community-engaged research on the history and legacy of Giant Mine. He lives in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Reviews

"Mining Country will appeal to anyone who worked in mining or lived in mining communities, and will inform those interested in learning about the place of mining in Canada’s history...the facts they present can’t be found anywhere else between two covers, and those facts need to be known to help the sector evolve and move us ahead."

Robert McCandless, Ormsby Review

"This is not a traditional book about mining...[it takes] a very evenhanded, a very nuanced approach to mining, to the industry's place within Canada."

Sean Graham, Host, History Slam

"Countless communities across this country have been shaped by mining...until now no one has really written a general history book about mining in Canada. So, they decided to fill the gap." 

Ramraajh Sharvendiran, CBC Saint John's Morning Show

Subjects (BISAC)

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