Cornish emigrants began to arrive in the area in 1842. Copper deposits at Bruce Mines came to the attention of non-native settlers in 1846, and mining began that year. The area was named after
James Bruce, the Earl of Elgin, appointed
Governor General of Canada in 1846. The Bruce Mines comprised Bruce, Wellington and Copper Bay mines. In 1876 the mines were closed due to floods, cave-ins, and declining profits, leading to a shift to agricultural development in the area. Mining resumed from 1915 to 1921, and despite occasional efforts to resume mining, has been inactive since then. However, the mine shafts are still open for the public to see. Bruce Mines was the second ever copper mining town in all of North America behind
Cliff Mine in Michigan's Copper Country. An Ontario Historical Plaque was erected by the province to commemorate the Bruce Mines' role in Ontario's heritage.
Early history The Bruce Mines changed ownership several times between 1847 and 1944 when they were decommissioned. Flooding and cave-ins in 1876 ended the 30-year period of active mining history. In the 1870s, agriculture and logging prospered in the wake of uncertainty with the mines. The Township of
Plummer Additional was incorporated in 1891; the Town of Bruce Mines became
Northern Ontario's first town when it separated from the township and incorporated in 1903. Several attempts by Mond Nickel to re-open the mines, shipping the quartz–copper flux ore to Sudbury, in the early 1900s saw only limited success. Mond Nickel shut down the Bruce Mines in 1921. The mines were decommissioned in 1944 and forestry activities have declined, but agriculture, aggregate extraction and tourism continue as the main economic activities in the area.
Marina history In 1846, the first copper mine opened in Bruce Mines. Miners from Cornwall, England, immigrated to the area to work the mines. The mining companies quickly built wharves and docks in the bay to handle the influx of people and materials. Two of the mine managers built their homes at the entrance to the main dock property. They made sure that only approved boats used the docks. The mining companies did not allow any stores to open in their town. All of the miners and their families were forced to purchase from the Company Store. The Marks brothers from Hilton Beach would load a barge on St. Joseph Island and bring fresh produce, meat and lumber to the miners in Bruce Mines. They were not allowed to land on the dock, so would anchor their barge in the middle of the bay and the people of Bruce Mines would row and paddle out to buy merchandise from them. Eventually, they opened one of the first mercantile stores in Bruce Mines. A Company tugboat, the "E. P. Sawyer", was a familiar sight in Bruce Mines. This tug was used to move barges around the bay from the different mines located in Bruce Mines. Passenger vessels, such as the "Caribou" and the "Premier" also stopped on a regular basis in Bruce Mines. These vessels brought much-needed cargo and passengers to the area. The "Premier" burned and sank at the dock in 1923. Divers later recovered the propeller and salvaged the metal from her boilers.
Museum history Built in 1894 as a Presbyterian Church, the "Church on the Rock" was used for services until 1917 when the congregation outgrew the church and united with the Methodist congregation, whose church could accommodate both groups. In the same year, a fire swept through the town and the local postmaster, whose building had been destroyed, moved the post office into the vacant church building. The building was used as a scout and church hall for many years until 1945 when another fire destroyed the Bruce Mines Public School. The building housed grades 9–12 for two years until grades 11 and 12 were moved to the old jail building and finally, in December 1948 the school moved into a new building. The building stood empty until the Town of Bruce Mines purchased it in 1950 when it was used as a public library and as a storage house for local artifacts. The museum officially opened in 1961 and in 1973 the library moved to the Bruce Mines Central School.
Library history It arrived from England and was aimed at the miners and other workers (bush workers, agriculture people) and was called 'The Mechanics Institute Library and was the first library for Bruce Mines, way back in the 1860s. It was housed in the museum in the 1950s and early 60s at which time Plummer Additional and the Town of Bruce Mines collaborated and passed a bylaw forming the Union Public Library. The library moved to what is now the Arthur Henderson Public School. Johnson Township joined forces in the mid-80s by becoming a contracting library. On April 3, 1993, the library became a unit all on its own with a modern building and since then has become a hub of modern activity. The Library moved from a card-based catalogue and borrowing system to a state of the art electronic system called automation. HRDC made automation possible with a funding grant. 1996 brought the establishment of the first CAP (Community Access Program) site to provide internet access to the area. The library's website was developed in 1998 under its Art Committee.
McKay Island Lighthouse history The McKay Island Lighthouse was built in 1907 to serve the timber industry. It had five keepers; Angus McNeish, Merrit Strum, Joseph Harvey, Gord Inch, and Mr. Wing. It became an unwatched light in October 1955. On October 25, 2009, the range light was converted to solar power with LED bulbs. It is now a housekeeping lighthouse and available to rent as accommodation. == Demographics ==