20th Century History:  Griffith Mine

In tracing the history of the Griffith Mine ore body, the earliest reference is found in the Ontario Bureau of Mines Report 1912.  The report notes that several beds of dark, fine grained stratified rock, containing a great amount of magnetite and specular iron ore, outcrop on the shore of Little Shallow Lake, now known as Bruce lake.  By 1955, test work had shown that the magnetite ore could be beneficiated to a high-grad iron product. In 1960, bulk samples of material were processed and found to be amendable to autogeneous grinding, and the test work concluded that the ore was quite hard and made an excellent pebble which would be very satisfactory for fine grinding.  In 1963 Pickands Mather was given a two year option to explore and evaluate the Bruce Lake property.  Following completion of the studies, Stelco decided to proceed with development and, in 1965, entered into a mining lease covering all claims. Construction began on the Griffith Mine in June of 1966.

Located on the western shore of Bruce Lake, the $62 million dollar project, owned by the Steel Company of Canada Ltd. and managed by Pickands Mather & Co., opened in 1968.  The 1.5 million-ton-per-year facility provided work for 350 - 400 men and had an annual payroll of $2 ½ million. It had an estimated 30 - 50 years of iron ore.

After 19 years of operation, Stelco Inc. announced on Thursday, November 15, 1984, that it would be closing the Griffith Mine iron ore operation in April 1985. The statement cited that the operation was costing more per unit of steel than any other of its North American mines and the closure was part of a general belt tightening aimed at decreasing costs.

The news was devastating to Ear Falls.

Overnight, a community of 2,000 lost 70% of its tax base.  The Griffith Mine paid 30% of all school board taxes. In the following 2 years, it lost 20 % of its population, $2.5 million in business income and over 50 jobs over and above the loss of jobs at the mine.  Real estate depreciated 30 - 40 per cent.

At the time the social and economic impact was immeasurable. But Ear Falls has survived and is looking optimistically to the future.  Today, the population is 1,200. The community is well planned and set for future development.  It is a modern community set within the beauty of Northwestern Ontario’s Sunset Country and is a great place to live, work and play.