We love getting questions about #geology, #mining and #minerals! We were asked about historical #coal #mining in beautiful #RichmondCounty, #CapeBreton - #Whiteside and #LowerRiverInhabitants specifically. Here's our answer.
#nspoli #NovaScotia #NS
#NovaScotia #coal was first mined in #Sydney in 1672. The first commercial coal #mining venture in #Canada was established by the #French in 1720 in #CowBay, #CapeBreton, to supply the #FortressofLouisbourg.
Coal still provides half of #NS' electricity.
#nspoli #minerals
There were several small historical #coal mines in the #Whiteside/#LowerRiverInhabitants area in the 1800s and early 1900s. Records are a bit spotty and even contradictory (mine names and dates can be inconsistent) but the mines appear to have included the following:
#nspoli #NS
The Sea #Coal Brook Mine started in the early 1860s at #RiverInhabitantsBasin.
The #Richmond Colliery (1868-1908) at #PortMalcolm.
The Basin #Colliery (1922-1923) at #MorashPoint.
The #Tidewater Colliery (1928-1929) at #Whiteside.
#nspoli #CapeBreton #NovaScotia #NS #mining
Another #coal mine was built in 1865 three miles inland on #LittleRiver but never operated because the company went bankrupt. It had a 60-feet shaft and was connected to tidewater by a three-mile railway.
#nspoli #mining #NovaScotia #CapeBreton #NS #geology #minerals
The name #LowerRiverInhabitants comes from the #French that settled the area: Riviére des Habitants. Settlers were supplied by the French government with tools, seed, enough food for 2 years and farm animals.
Many used #coal to heat their homes.
#nspoli
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