Fonds 2000.1 - Cassiar Asbestos Corporation Ltd. fonds

Title and statement of responsibility area

Title proper

Cassiar Asbestos Corporation Ltd. fonds

General material designation

  • Textual record
  • Graphic material
  • Architectural drawing
  • Technical drawing
  • Cartographic material

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Level of description

Fonds

Reference code

2000.1

Edition area

Edition statement

Edition statement of responsibility

Class of material specific details area

Statement of scale (cartographic)

Statement of projection (cartographic)

Statement of coordinates (cartographic)

Statement of scale (architectural)

Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

Dates of creation area

Date(s)

  • 3 April 1952 - 15 March 1993 (Creation)
    Creator
    Cassiar Asbestos Corporation Ltd.
    Place
    Cassiar, BC

Physical description area

Physical description

1625+ bankers boxes textual records ; 7000 photographic items (6100+ photographs, 900 slides) ; 1500+ cartographic items ; electronic holdings, sound and moving image holdings.

Publisher's series area

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Archival description area

Name of creator

(3 April 1952 - 15 March 1993)

Administrative history

Cassiar Asbestos Corporation Limited (CAC) was established in 1951 by the parent company Conwest Exploration Company Limited. CAC opened an asbestos mine and mill in 1952 in northern BC and constructed a townsite for its workers. Because Cassiar was unincorporated, CAC provided municipal services (sewer, water, electricity, medical, educational, community and retail.) Cassiar town holdings include administrative, housing, school, hospital, and retail store records. For 40 years Cassiar was a thriving one-industry town of 1200+ people. In the late 1950s, CAC began active efforts to find and acquire another asbestos deposit for the company. In 1957 such a deposit was discovered in the Yukon Territory, and acquired by CAC. By 1967 CAC had begun construction of a second mine, plant, and town in what became known as Clinton Creek. For most of its history the Cassiar operation was an open-pit mine, but in 1988 it began construction of an underground mine which became operational in 1990. The unprofitability of this underground operation contributed to the corporation’s bankruptcy in 1992. Most employees were laid off and in September the entire town, mine, and mill infrastructure was auctioned off by Maynard Industries, Vancouver.

Scope and content

Fonds consists of textual, photographic, cartographic, electronic and promotional films/video recordings related to the mining operations of Cassiar Asbestos Mining Corporation (CAMC) and creation of Cassiar townsite. CAMC records primarily consist of records related to mining operations including construction, engineering, daily mining operations, administration of CAMC, tallies of extractions, labour and union activities, corporate events and visits by dignitaries. Townsite records are primarily visual representations of townsite construction, including the creation of health, education and community services including Cassiar's private hospital, school, library, as well as townsite images. Photographs include documentation of natural and man-made landscapes within the Cassiar region of Northern BC. Other holdings include a near complete run of Cassiar's community newspaper.

Notes area

Arrangement

Language of material

    Script of material

      Location of originals

      Availability of other formats

      Restrictions on access

      Access to the Cassiar Asbestos Corporation fonds is currently unavailable. Contact archives@unbc.ca with inquiries.

      Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

      Personal or academic use of materials is welcomed under the standard fair dealing and educational use clauses of Canadian Copyright Law. Commercial use is, however, forbidden without the express permission of the copyright holder. For information on obtaining written permission from the copyright holder, please contact the Northern B.C. Archives and Special Collections.

      Finding aids

      An in-house inventory of textual records also exists, funded partially by an anonymous private foundation.

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      Accruals

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      Sources

      Leblanc, Suzanne "Cassiar: A Jewel in the Wilderness" Caitlin Press: Prince George, BC (2003). ; The Cassiar Asbestos Corporation, Ltd. ; and former members of the Cassiar, BC Community via the Cassiar Photo ID Facebook Project.

      Accession area