The Slocan Mines - Sandon, British Columbia
Posted by: 
wildwoodke
N 49° 58.548 W 117° 13.668
11U E 483666 N 5535964
The Slocan Mines were opened as a result of silver that was discovered in the area in 1891 of the "Payne" and "Slocan Star" silver-lead ore that was easily mined.
Waymark Code: WM2NWF
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 11/27/2007
Views: 74
Known in the 1890s at the Monte Carlo of North America, the City of Sandon lies in the Selkirk Mountain Range high in the heart of the Silvery Slocan. Famed for its unbelievably rich deposits of silver-lead ore, following the 1891 discovery of silver by Eli Carpenter and Jack Seaton, thousands of men soon filled the small valley almost to bursting.
In its heyday, Sandon boasted 29 hotels, 28 saloons, three breweries, one of the largest “red light districts” in Western Canada, many theatres and opera houses, a soft drink plant, a cigar factory, three sawmills, three churches, two newspapers, a schoolhouse, a hospital, and even a curling rink and a bowling alley. In addition, Sandon was home to over 5,000 people, including miners and millionaires, con men and gamblers, land speculators and “ladies of the evening.”
During Sandon's heyday over 300 mines were in operation within Sandon's vicinity. It took both rail lines to handle the shipments of ore going out and supplies for the mines coming in. Entire forests were consumed in order to supply the timber necessary for the operation of the mines.
The majority of the mines and camps were located above the 5,000 foot elevation. Since 1892, over 35 billion dollars (in today's value) of silver, lead and zinc have been produced from the Sandon area mines. This exceeds the value of the 3 major gold rushes- California, the Cariboo and the Klondike- combined!
Type of Marker: Cultural
Type of Sign: British Columbia Tourism Sign
Describe the parking that is available nearby: There is parking right in front of the sign...great place to walk around.
What Agency placed the marker?: Province of British Columiba in 1969
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