Small Gold Districts

The Government of Nova Scotia established over 60 historical gold districts, starting in the early 1860s during the province’s first gold rush. However, while some districts became big gold producers, many produced little to nothing.

In 1862, Nova Scotia’s legislature passed “An Act relating to the Gold Fields.” It gave the government authority to establish and regulate gold districts so areas where gold was found could be appropriately managed and have a legal system for staking claims (https://notyourgrandfathersmining.ca/gold-fields).

Designating a district was generally done around the time that gold was discovered, before it was known whether the district would prove to be successful. Many districts ended up having only modest prospecting or a small amount of mining.

Just because a district was not successful historically does not mean it doesn’t have potential today. Historical mines often did not pan out for a variety of reasons, including inefficient mining and milling techniques, lack of capital, lack of access to inexpensive electricity, challenges associated with transporting equipment and supplies through the wilderness, and lack of labour.

Many historical gold districts are therefore seen as having potential in the modern era since all of the above challenges are now easily addressed. In fact, almost all the activity in Nova Scotia’s gold sector is at historical mines where deposits were proven during our early gold rushes but modern science and technology make it possible to mine profitably while, of course, taking proper care of the environment.

Here are some examples of gold districts where prospecting and mining did not pan out historically.

CHEGOGGIN

In1890, J. D. Huntington built a 10-stamp mill to process a quartzite/silica deposit in Chegoggin Point, Yarmouth County, that he believed contained gold. Huntington believed the deposit was a massive quartz vein (aka lead) and since much of Nova Scotia’s gold is hosted in quartz veins, he thought he had a gold mine on his hands. He was wrong and the Chegoggin Gold District did not produce any gold.

However, Huntington was not done. In 1892, he investigated a nearby deposit of garnet in the hope that it could be used as an industrial abrasive. Several pits were dug and some of the extracted material was crushed in the mill he had built two years earlier. Unfortunately, this effort also did not work out.

Many decades later, the quartzite/silica deposit would provide silica for the Sydney steel mill and the extraction site is a lovely lake today. See the story at https://notyourgrandfathersmining.ca/chegoggin-point

CHEZZETCOOK

In 1913 in Chezzetcook, Halifax County, George J. Hiseler dug several shafts, one of which was 25 feet deep, on a gold-bearing quartz vein that was 15 inches thick. However, no assays (tests) were done on the Hiseler Lead’s ore to determine its value.

A 50-foot shaft sunk in 1910 on the Golden-Lode Lead was retimbered in 1913. A 10-foot shaft was sunk on the Easter Railroad Lead which had been discovered when rock was excavated for the building of the railroad.

Modest additional prospecting was done in 1914. The start of World War One in 1914 may have contributed to the cessation of work in Chezzetcook. Many Nova Scotia mines and quarries struggled, or ceased activity, during the World Wars due to labour, material and transportation challenges (https://notyourgrandfathersmining.ca/WWII-gypsum).

Efforts were made intermittently in the late 1800s and early 1900s to find the bedrock quartz vein from which a number of gold-bearing boulders had eroded. The source vein was never found, perhaps because the search was done “without system,” according to the 1914 Department of Mines annual report.

The Chezzetcook Gold District’s production is not easily determined because its production figures were combined with those of the nearby Lake Catcha district for many years.

CRANBERRY HEAD

Gold was discovered in 1868 at what became the Cream Pot mine at Cranberry Head, Yarmouth County. Two shafts and an open cut were dug but the mine shut down in 1871. It reopened in 1874 but closed again 1875.

The intermittent nature of the mining activity continued. The mine reopened in 1880 but closed again in 1881, and it reopened in 1897 but closed two or three years later.

In total, the Cranberry Head Gold District produced 249 ounces of gold.

ELMSDALE

In 1890, a little prospecting was done in Elmsdale, Halifax County, at Keyes Brook, about two miles east of Elmsdale Station on Canadian National Railway. Several quartz veins were found and two shafts were sunk to depths of 65 and 50 feet.

The Elmsdale Gold District produced 1.4 ounces of gold.

GEGOGAN

Prospecting took place at Gegogan, Guysborough County, in 1914, near the mouth of the St. Mary’s River and about seven miles south of Goldenville. Several veins were found but no mining took place. The 1893 Geological Survey of Canada map section below shows the Gegogan Gold District’s location and describes it as “Promising – has not been worked.”

The Gegogan Gold District produced zero ounces of gold and there are few references to it in historical records.


LISCOMB MILLS

In 1896 in Liscomb Mills, in Guysborough County at the head of Liscomb Harbour, Alexander McLeod and Malcolm Cameron opened the Giant Reef lead, so-named because the quartz vein was said to be 20 feet wide. Several other veins were also found north of Giant Reef, one of which was also 20 feet wide.

Despite the area’s apparent potential, a 1934 report said, “The property has not been mined at all….”


LITTLE LISCOMB LAKE

Mining began at Little Liscomb Lake, Guysborough County, in 1893. By 1897, the Little Liscomb Gold Mine had nine men digging shafts, the deepest of which was 60 feet. However, in 1898, a government inspector found that little work had been done in the previous several years.

In the 1930s, four residents of Rhode Island did prospecting in the area. Ore samples were sent to the Nova Scotia Technical College for analysis, but the results were discouraging.

In 1941, Eli Wilcox dug a 13-foot shaft and did some trenching, but work ceased. The area has been explored intermittently since the 1970s.

The Little Liscomb Lake Gold District produced 52 ounces of gold. In total, 22 trenches, pits and shafts were dug near the eastern shore of Little Liscomb Lake.


MCKAY SETTLEMENT

In McKay Settlement, gold was discovered in 1868 “but work has been little other than of an exploratory nature,” according to records. The McKay Settlement Gold District, also referred to as Ashdale, Meander River and Upper Newport, produced 13.5 ounces of gold.


SCRAGGY LAKE

Gold was discovered in 1867 at Scraggy Lake, Halifax County, five miles southeast of the Moose River Gold District. The Department of Mines annual report for that year said, “…but little has yet been done; appearances are encouraging.”

It would prove to be a while before more work was done. Thomas Barker did a little prospecting in 1890-91 and a mill operated in 1898 that produced a few ounces of gold.

“Considerable prospecting” was done in 1915 by N. McMillan, including the sinking of three pits. Five veins were found but no ore was crushed and no gold produced that year.

The Scraggy Lake (aka Gold Lake) Gold District produced a total of 37 ounces of gold.


UPPER STEWIACKE

Gold was discovered in 1865 in Upper Stewiacke (sometimes called South Branch Stewiacke in historical records). In 1867, “there was quite an excitement in the district; prospecting was carried on with considerable success and there was talk of erecting a crusher,” according to the annual report. Work also took place in 1884, 1906 and 1907 “but mining has not been carried on to any extent.”

The Upper Stewiacke Gold District produced 44 ounces.


QUODDY

In Quoddy, Halifax County, a test of some quartz was done in 1906. It produced one ounce of gold.

Other examples of historical districts that were not successful include Westfield (https://notyourgrandfathersmining.ca/westfield) and Lochaber (https://notyourgrandfathersmining.ca/lochaber).