Emerald’s winning crew

They say people make the world go round, and this was indeed the case at the Emerald lead-zinc-silver mine, near Salmo, British Columbia.

In the first instance, returning war veterans filled the ranks of the mine and mill workforce. To stimulate production, the company courted recent graduates in geology, mining and metallurgy from the University of British Columbia. Then, to meld all factions into a cohesive production team, some old pros were added to the payroll — among them, Old Jack MacKenzie, Brun Murphy, Jerry Christie, Hal Powell and Bill Grimwood. The younger echelon was staffed with Joe Adie, Jim Magee, Al Lonergan, Bob Brassington, Lou Stark, Doug Little and Clive Ball. Soon they were immersed in the realities of the mining scene. The mine was also fortunate in acquiring such experienced stalwarts as Jack Anderberg, Sig Nelson, Chris Christiansen, Tony Paloskis, Dayle Foyle, Jim Stewart and John Waselenko.

At the time, mining was rapidly yielding to the technical progress of machines. Trackless mining would soon transform systems and crew alike; rapid advances in mineral dressing and ore-treatment would soon alter the old “grind and gravity” outlook.

Canadian Exploration, a subsidiary of Placer Development, had acquired the property in 1947 from the Canadian government.

Before long, under the direction of John Simpson (1901-1988), Placer was launched on a phase of consolidated growth and expansion. Large-scale ventures would evolve in Australia, the Philippines, the U.S. and South America. The company would become one of the world’s largest producers of gold.

However, all good things come to an end. The Emerald’s crew began to disperse and migrate to other operations. Names like Craigmont and Endako would occupy the fleeting scene, to be followed by huge new ventures in Colorado, Peru, South Africa, and Chile.

But before they left, their experience and knowledge secured the company’s growth.

— The author, a retired mining engineer, resides in Vancouver, B.C.