Demise of The Dome

Friday was a sad day in the history of gold mining in Canada. It was announced that the famous Dome Mine, the first major gold mine discovered in Timmins, was going to be closed.  It has been the longest running gold mine in Canada, and when the gate is closed for the last time in July, it will have been in operation for 106 years. The mine was discovered in 1909. It went into production in 1920. In that time the mine has produced 18 million ounces of gold. That is more than the gold that was produced during the height of theKlondike gold rush.  I covered the news conference Friday but didn’t feel good about it. The Dome was the first mine where I went underground for a visit. That was in 1974. Nearly ten years later, I went underground there again when I was in mine rescue training. It really is a special piece of mining history.