King Beaver mine, Thetford Mines, Quebec

The King-Beaver mine at Thetford Mines, Quebec, joined two older Asbestos Corporation workings: "In 1958, the King mine and the Beaver mine were amalgamated under one operation, the King-Beaver mine," Asbestos, the industry's trade journal, reported.⁹ A 1939 item in the journal said that the King Mine "is one of the three asbestos mines started in 1876 and is now owned by Asbestos Corporation Limited."⁴ In April 1954 the journal noted that "1953 marked the 75th year of continuous operations at the King Mine," and another 1954 article said the Bell, King and Johnson's mines had "operated for about 75 years by sharing the same basic orebody."^1,2

Owners

In 1923 Asbestos wrote that Henry M. Whitney, "about the same time (1907)," had "purchased on his own account the King Mine at Thetford"; a 1939 article said that Bennett, with R. H. Martin and W. S. Thomas, "acquired control of the King Mine" and "subsequently sold his interests to the Amalgamated Asbestos Corporation in 1908."^3,4 By December 1921 the journal described "the King and Beaver Mines, both owned by the Asbestos Corporation of Canada," as "working steadily."⁶

The 1920s

In April 1921, the journal reported, the company "ceased nightwork at the King's, Beaver and British Canadian pits," in late 1921 the men at the Beaver asked for "six days with day and night shifts" when four were offered, and in June 1922 "Johnson's Mine, Bells and Kings have reopened recently, day shifts only."^5,6,7 A strike at the King Mine "caused some exciting days in Thetford during the last week of April" 1923; the Beaver Mine was closed, and the King men "remained out until Monday, the 30th."⁸ That spring the company was "erecting a new mill, valued at $500,000," and in July the journal reported "the destruction by fire of the King Mill."^8,10 In February 1924 "the new mill at the King Mine" was "being tuned up," and the Beaver Mine had built "a new dust chamber" that was "collecting most of the dust which formerly was scattered over the town."¹¹ A visitor in 1925 found that stripping at the King had "shown up vast ore reserves of very high quality" and that its mill was "running night and day."¹² A 1930 engineers' report, as the journal summed it up, said the Beaver mill "was erected at great cost without adequate investigation of the ore reserves."¹³ In June 1930 a company advertisement gave the material hoisted in one day as "7261 tons" at the Kings Mine and "2848 tons" at the Beaver Mine.¹⁴

Going underground

According to a 1954 article, the three Thetford mines worked open pits "until the 1930's," when "the depth of the workings and the lack of surface space first forced the King Mine to adopt underground methods of mining."¹ C. V. Smith wrote in Asbestos that the King Mine "was the first to adopt Block Caving" and "commenced drawing in July 1933"; the U.S. Bureau of Mines' Minerals Yearbook likened the system to the one "employed in the large copper mines of Arizona."^15,16 On January 18th, 1941, Lt. Colonel J. G. Ross reported, "a complete undercut was blasted in one shot."¹⁷ The company's annual reports tell of a vertical shaft begun at the King on May 20, 1937, that "had reached a depth of 857 feet" by yearend and was completed "to a depth of 1153 feet" in 1938.^18,19 In 1939 the journal described the new No. 3 shaft, sunk "to an initial depth of 1,150 feet" and "designed to permit hoisting of 4,000 tons of ore in 16 hours," and the company reported its new crushing plant in operation in June with "peak capacity" of "400 tons per hour."^20,21 At the Beaver, glory-holes were opened on the old Bennett-Martin ground in 1939 and 1940 to feed the Beaver Mill.^21,22 The annual reports said the King and Beaver mills ran "at capacity" in their reports for 1937 through 1945.^{18,21,22,23,24,25} In 1945 construction went on at the King on "the new Dust Filter Installation."²⁵

Relocation and the King-Beaver mill

In 1951 the company cut the King's mill feed from "130 tons an hour" to "110 tons an hour" on June 1st "in order to conserve ore reserves and because of the need to control surface subsidence."²⁶ By 1953 a "major relocation program" was clearing away "all surface establishments" over the planned underground workings of the Bell, King and Johnson's mines.¹ In 1955, the company reported, underground operations "provided 81% of the mill feed" at the King.²⁷ In 1957 the Beaver was out of production, and "only half of the mill feed of the King Mill came from underground."²⁸ Asbestos reported in 1958 that a "$5.5 million expansion and renovation" was "made necessary by conditions at King mine where settling resulting from underground mining operations is endangering surface plant," with a new King-Beaver mill built "on the site and with parts of the old Beaver mill."²⁸ The company reported that "in December, the King Mill was shut down," and that the cost had reached "$5,950,000."²⁹ The King-Beaver worked "at only 68% of its capacity" in 1959.³⁰

In 1964 the company integrated operations at "the adjoining properties of the King-Beaver and Johnson's Thetford mines."³¹ The Minerals Yearbook reported a new ore preparation plant at the King-Beaver "completed in December at a cost of Can$2.5 million" in 1969; the company's report in early 1970 called it "a new $2.2 million ore preparation and storage plant."^32,33 A "$4.5 million major expansion" was then planned "to increase daily plant processing capability to 12,000 tons of ore."^33,34 The company's reserve figures for the King-Beaver ran from "36,340,000 tons" for 1965 and "39.7 million tons" for 1972 to "30-million tons" for 1975 and "83,634,000 tons" for 1979.^35,36,37,38

The fire and after

The Minerals Yearbook for 1974 said that the fire on December 8 "destroyed part of the King-Beaver mill" and "could result in the loss of 160,000 tons of fiber production in 1975"; the yearbook for 1975 said the fire "destroyed the King-Beaver mill" and cut the company's capacity at Thetford Mines "from 150,000 to 100,000 tons per year," while Asbestos put the loss at "some 27%" of its annual capacity.^39,40,41 Underground mining reopened in January 1975, with the ore "transported to and treated at the British Canadian mills at Black Lake."^37,41 For 1976 the company reported that "a decision was made not to replace the mill at the King-Beaver Mine."⁴² "The King-Beaver open pit and ore preparation plant were reactivated in May and attained full production in November" of 1977, its open-pit ore going to the Normandie Mill.⁴³ In 1979 Asbestos gave the King underground "4500" and the Beaver open pit "31,000" tons of ore per day.⁴⁴

The documents report this mine producing asbestos fiber for sale.³⁹

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Location

Output the documents report

Figures as printed, in the units each document uses (short tons before about 1990, metric tons after, in most U.S. chapters). Some are a year's output, some a daily rate or a capacity, some a company's total rather than this mine's alone; the statement for that year below says which.

Year	Figure	Source
1930	2,848 tons of material hoisted in one day	14
1930	7,261 tons of material hoisted in one day	14
1951	110 tons an hour (mill feed)	26
1958	13,000 tons of ore per day (three mines together)	9
1975	160,000 tons of fiber	39
1975	100,000 tons per year	40
1979	31,000 tons of ore per day	44
1979	4,500 tons of ore per day	44

Year by year

Every statement about this mine in the documents, in each document's own words, by the year it is about.

1876

• Opened: “The King Mine is one of the three asbestos mines started in 1876; opened by King Brothers” (King Brothers), p. 29⁴

1879

• Worked: “have operated for about 75 years by sharing the same basic orebody”, p. 20¹
• Worked: “1953 marked the 75th year of continuous operations at the King Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 6²

1907

• Ownership: “Mr. Whitney purchased on his own account the King Mine at Thetford” (Henry M. Whitney), p. 34³

1908

• Ownership: “Ownership passed to H. M. Whitney of Boston; Bennett, Martin and Thomas acquired control and sold to the Amalgamated Asbestos Corporation in 1908; now owned by Asbestos Corporation Limited” (Amalgamated Asbestos Corporation), p. 29⁴

1921

• Workforce: “ceased nightwork at the King's, Beaver ... pits” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 66⁵
• Description: “all the steam locomotives at the King Mine having been superseded by electric locomotives” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 22⁴⁵
• Worked: “The King and Beaver Mines ... have been working steadily” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 19⁶
• Workforce: “offered to operate the Beaver Mine four days a week but the men asked for six days” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 19⁶

1922

• Worked: “Kings have reopened recently, day shifts only”, p. 51⁷

1923

• Mill: “erecting a new mill, valued at $500,000, at Thetford Mines” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 44⁸
• Mill: “the destruction by fire of the King Mill” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 14¹⁰
• Workforce: “enmity of the men directed at the Mines Manager, Colonel MacNutt” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 44⁸
• Idle: “The strike at the King Mine” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 44⁸
• Idle: “at the same time the Beaver Mine was closed” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 44⁸
• Workforce: “remained out until Monday, the 30th, when they were permitted to return to work” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 44⁸

1924

• Mill: “The new mill at the King Mine ... is being tuned up” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 40¹¹
• Dust and health: “has built a new dust chamber ... collecting most of the dust which formerly was scattered over the town” (Asbestos Corporation of Canada), p. 42¹¹

1925

• Mill: “Its mill ... is running night and day” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 24¹²
• Description: “Improvements have been made to the Beaver property” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 26¹²
• Reserves: “stripping which has shown up vast ore reserves of very high quality” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 24¹²

1928

• Mill: “the erection of the new mill at the Beaver Mine, Thetford” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 5⁴⁶

1929

• Worked: “the King Mine and Mill”, p. 17⁴⁷
• Mill: “The King Mill ... and the new Beaver Mill”, p. 17⁴⁷

1930

• Description: “Electric shovels put into operation at the King and Beaver Pits” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 52⁴⁸
• Reserves: “Beaver mill erected at great cost without adequate investigation of the ore reserves; moving the railway near the Beaver-Consolidated Mines judged impracticable” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 58¹³
• Reserves: “Possible recovery at the King mine increased to 5%, compared with between 2% and 3% a year ago” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 55⁴⁹
• Exploration: “Most of the development and exploration work done at the King mine; possible recovery increased to 5% from 2-3% a year ago” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 55⁴⁹
• Description: “the lack of surface space first forced the King Mine to adopt underground methods”, p. 20¹
• Output: “Beaver Mine: 2848 tons of material hoisted in one day” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, p. 19¹⁴
• Output: “Kings Mine: 7261 tons of material hoisted in one day” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, p. 19¹⁴

1931

• Description: “"The Thetford Riot": mob of laborers seized G. F. Jenkins, Superintendent of the Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation), p. 16⁴⁹
• Description: “Large tonnage of mill rock slipped from the southwest face of the Beaver Pit after heavy rains; no injury to workers” (Asbestos Corporation, Ltd.), p. 30⁵⁰

1932

• Description: “Mining by the block-caving method at the King Mine for the past nine years” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Lt. Colonel J. G. Ross, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 8¹⁷
• Description: “King Mine. Thetford Mines. The first mine to adapt block-caving in 1932. Total output from underground operations today” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 10⁹

1933

• Description: “The Asbestos Corporation, Ltd., introduced at the King mine a system of block caving similar to that employed in the large copper mines of Arizona” (Asbestos Corporation, Ltd.), p. 6¹⁶
• Description: “Both safety and efficiency have been promoted thereby” (Asbestos Corporation, Ltd.), p. 6¹⁶
• Description: “King Mine ... first to adopt Block Caving ... commenced drawing in July 1933” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by C. V. Smith, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 5¹⁵

1934

• Mill: “King Mill, sand bin and cobbing shed of the King Mine, photographed from King Head Tower No. 2” (Asbestos Corporation, Limited), p. 4⁵¹
• Mill: “Operating time at the King Mill increased 41% during 1934 over 1933, run throughout the year at capacity” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 38⁵²

1935

• Worked: “King mine ("Kings") operated for the full year 1935” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 37⁵³

1936

• Description: “Governor-General Lord Tweedsmuir visited the underground works: down to the 400 foot level and into the 500 foot pit” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 4⁵⁴
• Opened: “To obtain additional tonnage the company reopened the Beaver mine; now in continuous production” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 37⁵³

1937

• Description: “King pit: old cableway derrick towers no longer in use; all ore now hauled up an incline from the mouth of the vertical shaft at the bottom of the pit” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 12⁵⁵
• Mill: “King and Beaver mills operated at capacity throughout 1937” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40¹⁸
• Exploration: “Vertical shaft 13 ft. x 18 ft. begun at the King Mine May 20, 1937; 857 feet deep by year end; to reach 1,100 feet for a second block-caving level” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40¹⁸

1938

• Description: “George Jenkins, formerly Superintendent of the Beaver Mine, appointed Chief Engineer; succeeded by Sydney Bateman” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 40⁵⁶
• Exploration: “King Mine vertical shaft begun in 1937 completed to a depth of 1153 feet” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39¹⁹
• Exploration: “At King, Beaver, British Canadian and Vimy a total of 20,879 feet of diamond drilling, indicating additional ore in reserve at each property” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39¹⁹
• Dust and health: “G. F. Brink, Engineer at the Beaver Mine, won second prize for a paper on accident prevention” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 40⁵⁶

1939

• Exploration: “New No. 3 shaft sunk at the King Mine outside the deposit; five compartments, initial depth 1,150 feet, steel timbered; designed to hoist 4,000 tons of ore in 16 hours” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 40²⁰
• Mill: “New equipment at the King Mine (shaft and head frame, new crusher building and dryers) put into operation during the past summer” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 40²⁰
• Description: “Underground methods of asbestos mining adopted a few years ago at the King Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 40²⁰
• Mill: “Mills at the King, Beaver, Vimy and British-Canadian Mines operated at capacity throughout 1939” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²¹
• Exploration: “Beaver Mine: stripping on Bennett-Martin ground; second glory-hole opened to supply the Beaver Mill” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²¹
• Mill: “Development program at the King Mine approaching completion; new plant scheduled to operate by June 1, 1939” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39¹⁹
• Mill: “King Mine No. 3 Shaft with crushing plant and dryers put in operation in June 1939; new crushing plant peak capacity 400 tons per hour” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²¹

1940

• Worked: “King Mine, Beaver Mine ... still operating at capacity” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 32⁵⁷
• Mill: “Mills at the King, Beaver and Vimy Ridge Mines operated at capacity throughout 1940” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40²²
• Exploration: “A third glory-hole opened on the Bennett-Martin section at the Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40²²

1941

• Exploration: “At Beaver 4,416 feet of diamond drilling to further delimit the ore bodies” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 35²³
• Exploration: “Main haulage drift completed on the 900-foot level from the shaft to Block 905 (2,641 feet), with 1,200 feet of service drift on the 855-foot level; new blacksmith shop” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 35²³
• Mill: “Mills at King, Beaver and Vimy Ridge Mines operated at capacity throughout 1941” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 35²³
• Description: “Block-caving at the King Mine; on January 18th, 1941 a complete undercut (Block No. 513, 160 ft. x 160 ft.) blasted in one shot with more than eleven tons of dynamite” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Lt. Colonel J. G. Ross, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 8¹⁷

1943

• Mill: “Mills at the King, Beaver, British Canadian and Vimy Ridge Mines operated to capacity throughout 1943; open pit mining hampered by heavy snowfalls” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40²⁴
• Exploration: “Beaver Pit: 129,309 yards of overburden removed; a new mining area opened with an ore pass, hoist house and hoist” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40²⁴
• Exploration: “King Mine: 13,359 feet of drifts and raises on the 500 and 900 foot levels; ore recovery from the first block on the 900 foot level started in December” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40²⁴

1944

• Description: “Shrinkage stopes were used successfully at the Beaver Mine and at the King Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by C. V. Smith, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 5¹⁵
• Description: “Operations at the King mine of the Asbestos Corporation, Ltd., have been described in some detail” (Asbestos Corporation, Ltd.), as reported by Canadian Mining Journal, p. 9⁵⁸
• Worked: “operated at capacity thruout the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 38⁵⁹
• Description: “construction was started on a new dry rock storage bin at the King Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 38⁵⁹
• Description: “The largest commercial cableway system ever installed: 8 movable cableways of 1400 foot span at the King Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 6⁶⁰

1945

• Description: “At the Beaver Mine ... 137,698 cubic yards of rock and overburden were removed” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 45²⁵
• Exploration: “At the King Mine development work ... 8,462 feet of drifts and raises” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 45²⁵
• Dust and health: “construction was continued on ... the new Dust Filter Installation” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 45²⁵
• Worked: “operated at capacity thruout the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 45²⁵

1946

• Description: “new dry rock storage bin ... completed and put into operation during the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40⁶¹
• Worked: “operated at capacity thruout the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40⁶¹
• Exploration: “At the King Mine development work consisted of 9,873 feet of drifts and raises” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40⁶¹

1947

• Exploration: “At the Beaver Mine ... diversion of a part of the main line of the Quebec Central Railway ... to develop additional ore” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40⁶¹

1951

• Description: “completed at the Beaver Mine ... a new mine shop ... of the Quonset Hut Type” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 16⁶²
• Mill: “Beaver and King Mills (Asbestos Corporation) 6,000 [daily rock tonnage]” (Asbestos Corporation), as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 50⁶²
• Mill: “an Aerofall mill is or will be installed in the Beaver mill of the Asbestos Corp. in Quebec” (Asbestos Corp.), as reported by Canadian Min. and Met. Bull., p. 7⁶³
• Worked: “Operations at the Company's four producing mines ... continued at capacity thruout 1951” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 44²⁶
• Output: “the mill feed rate of 130 tons an hour was reduced to 110 tons an hour on June 1st” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 44²⁶
• Mill: “At the Beaver Mine an experimental unit of ... the Aerofall Mill was installed” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 44²⁶

1952

• Worked: “operated at close to capacity thruout the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48⁶⁴
• Mill: “the new Aerofall mill ... operated at capacity thruout the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48⁶⁴

1953

• Description: “a major relocation program ... clearing away of all surface establishments ... above present and planned underground workings”, p. 20¹
• Exploration: “At the Beaver Mine ... to provide for the development and eventual mining of the new ore body” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 8²
• Mill: “gradual replacement of the screens in the mill ... continued throughout the year” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 6²

1954

• Reserves: “cost ... shared ... in proportion to the ore reserves which the project will make available to each mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Leigh W. Bladon, manager, Relocation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 22¹
• Description: “At the King Mine where operations are underground for the most part, the modifications to the crusher house ... completed” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 44⁶⁵
• Exploration: “The development of the new ore body at Beaver progressed satisfactorily and 5,840 feet of new haulageway were completed” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 44⁶⁵

1955

• Description: “Underground operations at the King Mine provided 81% of the mill feed at that mine” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁷
• Worked: “At the King, Beaver ... Mines production was at maximum capacity” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁷
• Exploration: “The first stage of the stripping program on the new ore body at the Beaver Mine, originally started in 1953, was finished during the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁷
• Exploration: “Drifting and cross-cutting for the year amounted to 4,810 feet and raising to 2,786 feet” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁷

1956

• Worked: “operated at or near capacity throughout the whole of the year” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 34⁶⁶

1957

• Mill: “The King mill will be dismantled” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8⁶⁷
• Mill: “The Beaver mill of the Asbestos Corp. was renovated and enlarged” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8⁶⁷
• Mill: “to handle the production of both the Beaver and King mines” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8⁶⁷
• Mill: “the re-opening of the enlarged King-Beaver Mill and the closing and dismantling of the King Mill” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²⁸
• Description: “At the Beaver, stripping operations continued throughout the year and helped account for the record figure of 52,825 tons of all materials handled per working day” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²⁸
• Idle: “With the exception of the Beaver Mine, all plants were in operation at or near maximum capacity during 1957” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²⁸
• Description: “Only half of the mill feed of the King Mill came from underground and the balance from the adjacent open pit operations” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39²⁸

1958

• Mill: “a $5.5 million expansion and renovation at its King and Beaver mines. A new mill — the King-Beaver mill — is being built on the site and with parts of the old Beaver mill” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8²⁸
• Description: “conditions at King mine where settling resulting from underground mining operations is endangering surface plant” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8²⁸
• Reserves: “a large tonnage of otherwise unminable underground ore and one comparatively small surface ore body will be made available” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8²⁸
• Mill: “When complete it will treat ore from both King and Beaver mines. The King mill, now in operation, will be closed” (Asbestos Corp.), p. 8²⁸
• Mill: “King Mine ... 3,120 T. mill } to be combined with joint new mill” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 8⁶⁸
• Mill: “Beaver Mine ... 3,120 T. " } to be combined with joint new mill” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 8⁶⁸
• Mill: “Capital cost of the changeover at the end of 1958 had reached $5,950,000, slightly more than the $5.5 million originally estimated” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁹
• Mill: “In 1958, company completed enlargement of the Beaver Mill (now called the King-Beaver Mill) to handle output from both the King and Beaver mines” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁹
• Idle: “There were no operations at the Beaver mine in 1958, as the mill was being enlarged and renovated” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 22⁹
• Output: “A daily production of 13,000 tons of ore came from the British-Canadian, King and Normandie mines” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 22⁹
• Ownership: “In 1958, the King mine and the Beaver mine were amalgamated under one operation, the King-Beaver mine” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 22⁹
• Mill: “One section of this mill was placed in operation at the end of September, at a production rate of 1,000 tons per day. Once completed, this mill will be able to handle 6,000 tons of ore per day” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 22⁹
• Mill: “In December, the King Mill was shut down” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 48²⁹

1959

• Idle: “the King-Beaver worked at only 68% of its capacity” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 54³⁰

1960

• Description: “Block-caving methods at the King Mine, Quebec” (Asbestos Corporation), as reported by Canadian Mining and Metallurgical Bulletin (Montreal), p. 11⁶⁹
• Exploration: “development of the new open pit ore made available in the so-called Consolidated wall area advanced according to plan at King-Beaver” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 62⁷⁰
• Idle: “Aside from a five week lay-off during last winter at the King-Beaver Mine, all properties were running at or near capacity during 1960” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 62⁷⁰

1962

• Reserves: “King-Beaver, 12.4” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 7⁷¹

1964

• Description: “integration of operations at the adjoining properties of the King-Beaver and Johnson's Thetford mines” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 25³¹

1965

• Mill: “intends to increase the production facilities of King-Beaver asbestos mill by about 30 per cent” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), p. 23⁷²
• Reserves: “King-Beaver—36,340,000 tons” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 24³⁵

1967

• Mill: “The mill expansion program was completed” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 22⁷³
• Reserves: “King-Beaver Mine—45,942,000” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 22⁷³

1968

• Mill: “construction has commenced at the King-Beaver mine on a new ore preparation plant costing $2.5 million” (The Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos Corporation Ltd. Annual Report, p. 9⁷⁴
• Mill: “will process all King-Beaver's open-pit ore” (The Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos Corporation Ltd. Annual Report, p. 9⁷⁴
• Description: “a new underground crushing station at the King-Beaver No. 3 shaft was being built” (The Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos Corporation Ltd. Annual Report, p. 9⁷⁴
• Reserves: “King-Beaver mine | 44,655 (thousand short tons)” (The Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos Corporation Ltd. Annual Report, p. 9⁷⁴

1969

• Reserves: “King-Beaver Mine | 41,662 (thousand short tons)” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos Corporation Ltd. Annual Report, p. 8³²
• Mill: “the dryer building at the King-Beaver No. 3 plant was moved to the King-Beaver No. 4 plant” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 42⁷⁵
• Mill: “a new ore preparation and storage plant was completed in December at a cost of Can$2.5 million” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), as reported by Asbestos Corporation Ltd. Annual Report, p. 7³²
• Reserves: “King-Beaver Mine, 41,662,000” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 42⁷⁵

1970

• Mill: “will raise plant processing capability to 12,000 tons of ore per day” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 18³³
• Worked: “is currently operating at full capacity” (Asbestos Corporation Limited), said by Asbestos Corporation Limited, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 18³³
• Mill: “A $4.5 million major expansion ... to increase daily plant processing capability to 12,000 tons of ore” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 18³⁴

1972

• Reserves: “39.7 million tons at King-Beaver” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 34³⁶

1973

• Mill: “built a $600,000 crushing station at the 1400-foot level of the King-Beaver Shaft No. 3” (Asbestos Corporation), as reported by Asbestos Producer, p. 34⁷⁶

1974

• Mill: “the processing mill at the King-Beaver Mine was destroyed by fire in December 1974” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 30⁴¹
• Mill: “the fire that destroyed the King-Beaver mill of Asbestos Corp. Ltd. in Thetford Mines” (Asbestos Corp. Ltd.), p. 9⁴⁰
• Mill: “The fire that destroyed part of the King-Beaver mill of the Asbestos Corp. Ltd. on December 8” (Asbestos Corp. Ltd.), p. 9³⁹

1975

• Output: “could result in the loss of 160,000 tons of fiber production in 1975” (Asbestos Corp. Ltd.), p. 9³⁹
• Mill: “natural disasters (the fire at the King-Beaver Mill and the landslide at the Jeffrey Mine)” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 32⁷⁷
• Worked: “Underground mining operations at the K-B Mine were reopened in January 1975” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 30⁴¹
• Worked: “operates the King-Beaver, British-Canadian and Normandie Mines” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 30⁴¹
• Idle: “a strike prevented the needed drilling for 7 months” (Asbestos Corp. Ltd.), p. 9⁴⁰
• Output: “reduced that company's capacity for fiber production from 150,000 to 100,000 tons per year in that locality” (Asbestos Corp. Ltd.), p. 9⁴⁰
• Reserves: “Reserve updating was necessary prior to mill replacement planning” (Asbestos Corp. Ltd.), p. 9⁴⁰
• Worked: “Underground operations at the King-Beaver Mine have been resumed and the ore is being transported to and treated at the British Canadian mills at Black Lake” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 36³⁷
• Reserves: “A breakdown for the year 1975 shows 30-million tons at King-Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 36³⁷

1976

• Opened: “the King-Beaver Mine which is to be reactivated” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 30⁷⁸
• Reserves: “29.9-million tons at the King-Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40⁴²
• Mill: “A decision was made not to replace the mill at the King-Beaver Mine; plans are currently being implemented to mine and beneficiate the K-B open pit ore ... and to transport the ore to the Normandie Mill” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 40⁴²

1977

• Description: “owns the underground King-Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 27⁷⁹
• Mill: “open-pit ore from the King-Beaver Mine is now processed at the Normandie Mill” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 32⁴³
• Opened: “The King-Beaver open pit and ore preparation plant were reactivated in May and attained full production in November” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 34⁴³
• Reserves: “73,311,000 tons at the King-Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 34⁴³

1978

• Worked: “the mill continues to process ore from the King-Beaver open pit” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 30⁸⁰
• Idle: “The Beaver open-pit and Normandie mill operations at Thetford Mines, Quebec, were shut down for four weeks in July” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 46⁸¹
• Reserves: “78.8-million tons are at the King Beaver Mine” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 46⁸²

1979

• Output: “the Beaver ... open pits; producing ... 31,000 ... tons of ore per day” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 28⁴⁴
• Output: “The mills are fed from three separate mines—the King underground and the Beaver and British Canadian open pits; producing 4500, 31,000 and 60,000 tons of ore per day, respectively” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 28⁴⁴
• Reserves: “King-Beaver Mine 83,634,000 tons” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), said by Asbestos Corporation Ltd., as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 39³⁸

1980

• Description: “In the King-Beaver Mine ... each gallery is provided with rail tracks; drainage ditch; Water which infiltrates the mine flows through these ditches to catch basins” (Asbestos Corporation Ltd.), p. 6³⁸

In medical studies

Medical studies in our research library that name this mine, by how they concern it. A search found every one that names the mine and an AI reader sorted them; the quotation, checked word for word against the text, shows where. Those that name the mine only in passing or in a reference list are left out.

Studies of the mine’s workers (1)

• Pooley FD 1976: An examination of the fibrous mineral content of asbestos lung tissue from the Canadian chrysotile mining industry

Other names

Documents call this mine “Beaver mill”, “King-Beaver”, “King-Beaver mine”, “King-Beaver Mine”, “King-Beaver mill”, “King Mine”, “Beaver Mine”, “King's”, “King Mill”, “Beaver Mill”, “Kings Mine”, “King Asbestos Mine”, “Beaver Pit”, “Beaver-Consolidated Mines”, “King-Beaver Mill”, “King-Beaver No. 3 plant”, “King-Beaver No. 4 plant”, “K-B Mine”, “King underground”, “Beaver open pit”, “King-Beaver open pit”, “King mine”, “Beaver mine”, “King mill”.

See also

• Asbestos Corp.: the company's history, documents, people, products and plants
• All asbestos mines

References

1. Asbestos Magazine, 1954, February 1954 (February 1, 1954), pp. 20, 22.
2. Asbestos Magazine, 1954, April 1954 (April 1, 1954), pp. 6, 8.
3. Asbestos Magazine, 1923, March 1923 (March 1, 1923), p. 34.
4. Asbestos Magazine, 1939, August 1939 (August 1, 1939), p. 29.
5. Asbestos Magazine, 1921, April 1921 (April 1, 1921), p. 66.
6. Asbestos Magazine, 1921, December 1921 (December 1, 1921), p. 19.
7. Asbestos Magazine, 1922, June 1922 (June 1, 1922), p. 51.
8. Asbestos Magazine, 1923, May 1923 (May 1, 1923), p. 44.
9. Asbestos Magazine, 1959, July 1959 (July 1, 1959), pp. 10, 22.
10. Asbestos Magazine, 1923, July 1923 (July 1, 1923), p. 14.
11. Asbestos Magazine, 1924, February 1924 (February 1, 1924), pp. 40, 42.
12. Asbestos Magazine, 1925, October 1925 (October 1, 1925), pp. 24, 26.
13. Asbestos Magazine, 1930, December 1930 (December 1, 1930), p. 58.
14. Asbestos Magazine, 1930, June 1930 (June 1, 1930), p. 19.
15. Asbestos Magazine, 1944, November 1944 (November 1, 1944), p. 5.
16. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1934 (January 1, 1935), p. 6.
17. Asbestos Magazine, 1941, June 1941 (June 1, 1941), p. 8.
18. Asbestos Magazine, 1938, March 1938 (March 1, 1938), p. 40.
19. Asbestos Magazine, 1939, March 1939 (March 1, 1939), p. 39.
20. Asbestos Magazine, 1939, October 1939 (October 1, 1939), p. 40.
21. Asbestos Magazine, 1940, February 1940 (February 1, 1940), p. 39.
22. Asbestos Magazine, 1941, February 1941 (February 1, 1941), p. 40.
23. Asbestos Magazine, 1942, March 1942 (March 1, 1942), p. 35.
24. Asbestos Magazine, 1944, March 1944 (March 1, 1944), p. 40.
25. Asbestos Magazine, 1946, March 1946 (March 1, 1946), p. 45.
26. Asbestos Magazine, 1952, March 1952 (March 1, 1952), p. 44.
27. Asbestos Magazine, 1956, March 1956 (March 1, 1956), p. 48.
28. Asbestos Magazine, 1958, April 1958 (April 1, 1958), pp. 8, 39.
29. Asbestos Magazine, 1959, April 1959 (April 1, 1959), p. 48.
30. Asbestos Magazine, 1960, May 1960 (May 1, 1960), p. 54.
31. Asbestos Magazine, 1965, April 1965 (April 1, 1965), p. 25.
32. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1969 (January 1, 1970), pp. 7–8.
33. Asbestos Magazine, 1970, February 1970 (February 1, 1970), p. 18.
34. Asbestos Magazine, 1970, December 1970 (December 1, 1970), p. 18.
35. Asbestos Magazine, 1966, May 1966 (May 1, 1966), p. 24.
36. Asbestos Magazine, 1973, May 1973 (May 1, 1973), p. 34.
37. Asbestos Magazine, 1976, May 1976 (May 1, 1976), p. 36.
38. Asbestos Magazine, 1980, July 1980 (July 1, 1980), pp. 6, 39.
39. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1974 (January 1, 1975), p. 9.
40. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1975 (January 1, 1976), p. 9.
41. Asbestos Magazine, 1975, December 1975 (December 1, 1975), p. 30.
42. Asbestos Magazine, 1977, May 1977 (May 1, 1977), p. 40.
43. Asbestos Magazine, 1978, May 1978 (May 1, 1978), pp. 32, 34.
44. Asbestos Magazine, 1979, December 1979 (December 1, 1979), p. 28.
45. Asbestos Magazine, 1921, October 1921 (October 1, 1921), p. 22.
46. Asbestos Magazine, 1929, January 1929 (January 1, 1929), p. 5.
47. Asbestos Magazine, 1929, September 1929 (September 1, 1929), p. 17.
48. Asbestos Magazine, 1930, February 1930 (February 1, 1930), p. 52.
49. Asbestos Magazine, 1931, February 1931 (February 1, 1931), pp. 16, 55.
50. Asbestos Magazine, 1931, August 1931 (August 1, 1931), p. 30.
51. Asbestos Magazine, 1934, May 1934 (May 1, 1934), p. 4.
52. Asbestos Magazine, 1935, April 1935 (April 1, 1935), p. 38.
53. Asbestos Magazine, 1937, April 1937 (April 1, 1937), p. 37.
54. Asbestos Magazine, 1936, March 1936 (March 1, 1936), p. 4.
55. Asbestos Magazine, 1937, July 1937 (July 1, 1937), p. 12.
56. Asbestos Magazine, 1938, April 1938 (April 1, 1938), p. 40.
57. Asbestos Magazine, 1940, November 1940 (November 1, 1940), p. 32.
58. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1944 (January 1, 1945), p. 9.
59. Asbestos Magazine, 1945, March 1945 (March 1, 1945), p. 38.
60. Asbestos Magazine, 1944, October 1944 (October 1, 1944), p. 6.
61. Asbestos Magazine, 1947, March 1947 (March 1, 1947), p. 40.
62. Asbestos Magazine, 1951, April 1951 (April 1, 1951), pp. 16, 50.
63. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1951 (January 1, 1952), p. 7.
64. Asbestos Magazine, 1953, March 1953 (March 1, 1953), p. 48.
65. Asbestos Magazine, 1955, March 1955 (March 1, 1955), p. 44.
66. Asbestos Magazine, 1957, April 1957 (April 1, 1957), p. 34.
67. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1957 (January 1, 1958), p. 8.
68. Asbestos Magazine, 1958, October 1958 (October 1, 1958), p. 8.
69. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1960 (January 1, 1961), p. 11.
70. Asbestos Magazine, 1961, April 1961 (April 1, 1961), p. 62.
71. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1962 (January 1, 1963), p. 7.
72. Asbestos Magazine, 1965, June 1965 (June 1, 1965), p. 23.
73. Asbestos Magazine, 1968, May 1968 (May 1, 1968), p. 22.
74. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1968 (January 1, 1969), p. 9.
75. Asbestos Magazine, 1970, July 1970 (July 1, 1970), p. 42.
76. Asbestos Magazine, 1973, June 1973 (June 1, 1973), p. 34.
77. Asbestos Magazine, 1975, July 1975 (July 1, 1975), p. 32.
78. Asbestos Magazine, 1976, December 1976 (December 1, 1976), p. 30.
79. Asbestos Magazine, 1977, December 1977 (December 1, 1977), p. 27.
80. Asbestos Magazine, 1978, December 1978 (December 1, 1978), p. 30.
81. Asbestos Magazine, 1978, October 1978 (October 1, 1978), p. 46.
82. Asbestos Magazine, 1979, June 1979 (June 1, 1979), p. 46.