ODDS ‘N’ SODS — Times are still a changing

So many changes were occurring during the portion of the 20th century I was fortunate enough to have traversed, it might have been deemed a second Industrial Revolution.

Certainly, the work I was involved in when I first arrived on the mining scene was mainly pick-and-shovel, but it soon evolved to include vehicles, machines, robotics and the atomic age. Those changes happened rapidly.

I was busy throughout this transition, happily and industriously employed in the mining industry. Over a period of 50 years, I was involved with more than a dozen mines and a motley group of people. I can quickly and easily recall names and operations: Jack Zucco and the Red Rose tungsten mine; Harold Lakes and the Emerald tungsten-lead-zinc mine; Hugh Langille and the Pioneer gold mine; Jack Graham at the Geco copper-zinc-silver mine; Barry Bourne and the Quirke uranium mine; George Jewett and the Panel uranium mine; Karl Springer and the Canada Tungsten mine; and Merv Upham and the Granduc copper mine. Those men shared with me a common experience and a similar idea of what constituted an honest day’s work.

There were others whose presence enriched the scene, including: Ivor Phipps, the spirited cook at the Emerald mine; John Kendahl, the wise and patient drift miner at the Red Rose; Joe Feeney, the keen and detailed prospector at the Emerald; George Robson, the versatile mine captain at the Quirke; Aaro Aho, the dedicated and resourceful geologist at the Peso silver mine; Sam Nealy, the loyal and industrious worker at the Granduc; and Osser Louste, the faithful woodsman at CanTung’s operation.

These were robust people in equally robust settings, who displayed qualities of strength and firmness in both purpose and outlook. Burden and responsibility were shared, and there was a standing invitation for involvement and contribution. From the hand-steel miner to the mechanized drift leader, the focus was on accomplishing the often arduous tasks that constituted the daily routine. As times and the workplace changed, these people adapted and welcomed new concepts and procedures.

Like many of my fellow travelers during this transitional phase, I was chiefly a spectator. We all shared, however, the spirit of adventure, enterprise and commitment.

In hindsight, tremendous obstacles and transitions were surmounted with pride, concession and dignity. For example, everyone loved and respected the devoted horse, but another love affair blossomed when the mechanized carriage appeared. Helicopters replaced the tried and true “packsack” migrant with his bushy beard and patient plodding, but took those same men on marvelous airborne journeys over familiar hills and valleys. Imagine stubborn Harold Lakes and patient Joe Feeney when confronted with photographic geological mapping and the challenge of interpreting aerial resistance surveys.

Old and faithful tools were set aside as new models were introduced. A few ancient and proven traditions graciously acceded to more exacting formulas and innovations. Vigorous time-and-motion studies soon presided over our every act and procedure.

We are privileged to witness the beginning of a new millennium, which will no doubt provide a vast new assemblage of ideas, principles and challenges.

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