An Alberta coal company advertises in Ontario
International Coal and Coke Company Ltd
 Community homes in Nordegg
  • Indigenous effigy made from coal in the form of a bison

    Early indigenous people transform coal found in seams in foothills and mountain regions into effigies.

    Most of the effigies depict bison, usually cows, with tongues out, indicating either running or being in labour. The specimens have all suffered damage from ploughing but are still remarkable and accurate anatomical reproductions of bison.
    Source: Royal Alberta Museum

  • First record of coal in Alberta, Peter Fidler’s Journey page

    The presence of coal in Alberta is first recorded by a European explorer.

    In the February 12, 1793, entry of “Journal of a Journey over Land from Buckingham House to the Rocky Mountains in 1792 & 3 by Peter Fidler,” Fidler describes his coal discovery.
    Source:  Hudson’s Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba, E.3-2 fo.30

  • First commercial coal mine in Alberta, Sheran mine in Glenbow, Edmonton, 1948

    The first commercial coal mine begins operation near present-day Lethbridge, Alberta.

    Nicholas Sheran’s mine, 1881
    Source: Glenbow Archives, NA-1948-2

  • First large-scale commercial coal mine in Alberta. Nicholas Sheran’s mine, 1885

    The first large-scale commercial mine begins production in Alberta.

    The entrance to Galt Drift Mine No. 1 in 1885 near present-day Lethbridge; Sir Alexander Galt establishes the mine to exploit the region’s abundant coal deposits. Galt also establishes the North Western Coal and Navigation Company in the same year to supply coal to the Canadian Pacific Railway.
    Source: Glenbow Archives, NA-3188-43

  • A view of International Coal and Coke Company at Coleman in the Crowsnest Pass, ca. 1912

    Coal mining begins in the Crowsnest Pass region of Alberta.

    A view of International Coal and Coke Company at Coleman in the Crowsnest Pass, ca. 1912, eleven years after production started; the region yields a high volume of industrial steam coal.
    Source: Image courtesy of Peel’s Prairie Provinces, a digital initiative of the University of Alberta Libraries, PC003325

  • Mountain Park Station, Mountain Park, Alberta, ca. 1920-1923

    Coal Branch mines open southwest of Edson, Alberta.

    Mountain Park Station, Mountain Park, Alberta, ca. 1920-1923; small-scale mining had begun in the Coal Branch about 1909, but after 1910 the arrival of the railway opened up the region to large-scale mining. Mountain Park appears to have been the first major community to grow, reaching a population of about 330 by the early 1920s.
    Source: Provincial Archives of Alberta, CL26

  • Pit ponies pulling loaded coal-filled wooden mine cars underground at Newcastle Mine in 1914

    First large commercial mine in Drumheller starts production.

    Horses pull coal-filled wooden mine cars underground at Newcastle Mine in 1914, three years after Newcastle opened in Drumheller.
    Source: Provincial Archives of Alberta, A6152

  • An initial gas explosion triggers a larger coal dust explosion, killing 189 miners. The initial fatalities estimate reported in the Edmonton Capital newspaper on June 19, 1914, was later revised

    Alberta’s deadliest coal mine disaster occurs at Hillcrest, Alberta.

    An initial gas explosion triggers a larger coal dust explosion, killing 189 miners. The initial fatalities estimate reported in the Edmonton Capital newspaper on June 19, 1914, was later revised.
    Source: Image courtesy of Peel’s Prairie Provinces, a digital initiative of the University of Alberta Libraries, Ar00113

  • Strikers from One Big Union (OBU) at Drumheller, Alberta,  in 1919

    Cost of living rises by 65% since onset of World War I in 1914, contributing to coal industry labour unrest and heightened union activity.

    Strikers from the One Big Union (OBU) at Drumheller, Alberta, in 1919; the union forms after labour workers broke away from the United Mine Workers Association union. Miners are drawn to the OBU because of the deepening economic crisis.
    Source: Glenbow Archives, NA-2513-1

  • Newcastle Mine in the Drumheller mining district of the province after ten years of expansion in 1921

    The province is divided into thirty-two coal mining districts as the industry expands broadly.

    Newcastle Mine in the Drumheller mining district after ten years of expansion, 1921; Drumheller is one of thirty-two districts created to facilitate keeping track of the booming industry’s developments, inspections and infrastructure requirements.
    Source: Provincial Archives of Alberta, A6081

  • A view of the booming International Coal and Coke Company Ltd. at Coleman, ca. 1945

    The Second World War begins to revive Alberta’s economy and coal industry, which had declined during the Great Depression.

    A view of the booming International Coal and Coke Company Ltd. at Coleman, ca. 1945; increased demand for steam coal during the war years led to greater production within the industry.
    Source: Glenbow Archives, NC-54-2930

  • On February 22, 1947, an issue of The Western Examiner proclaims the discovery of the Imperial Leduc No.1 oil well as the birth of a new Alberta oil field.

    The discovery of a major oil deposit at Leduc, Alberta, foreshadows a decline in the province’s coal production.

    On February 22, 1947, an issue of The Western Examiner proclaims the discovery of the Imperial Leduc No.1 oil well as the birth of a new Alberta oil field. During the decade after the 1947 discovery, many mines close, and most coal towns decline significantly.
    Source: Glenbow Archives, NA-789-80

  • A heavy-duty truck hauling coal at the Wabamun surface mining operation near the TransAlta Power Plant demonstrates the advanced mechanization propelling Alberta’s modernizing coal industry in the 1960s

    Large-scale surface mining begins in Alberta near Lake Wabamun to fuel a large thermal electric power plant.

    A heavy-duty truck hauling coal at the Wabamun surface mining operation near the TransAlta Power Plant demonstrates the advanced mechanization propelling Alberta’s modernizing coal industry in the 1960s.
    Source: Provincial Archives of Alberta, gr1989.0516.1088#1

  • The Whitemud Creek Mine in Edmonton’s river valley in 1968

    The last mine in Edmonton’s river valley closes.

    The Whitemud Creek Mine in Edmonton’s river valley in 1968; this operation is the last of Edmonton’s coal mines to close in 1970. At this time, the mine continues to rely on horses to haul coal to its opening.
    Source: City of Edmonton Archives, EA-20-4998

  • Atlas Mine in Drumheller Valley after restoration.

    Drumheller Valley and Canmore mines close after decades in operation.

    The Atlas Mine in Drumheller stops production in 1979 and officially closes in 1984. The large structure is the last wooden tipple standing in Canada. The mine is a Provincial Historic Resource, a National Historic Site of Canada and one of the region’s star attractions.
    Source: Courtesy of Sue Sabrowski and the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology

  • The retired Marion 360 Stripping Shovel at the Diplomat Mine site near Forestburg, Alberta.

    Mining near Forestburg ends after more than seventy years.

    The retired Marion 360 Stripping Shovel at the Diplomat Mine site near Forestburg, Alberta; the interpretive site is a Provincial Historic Resource and Canada’s only surface coal mining museum. The kind of large-scale surface mining conducted near Forestburg requires massive equipment such as the Marion 360.
    Source: Diplomat Mine Interpretive Site

  • The Wabamun power plant in the final stages before destruction.

    Wabamun coal-fired power plant is retired and demolished after almost fifty years in operation.

    The Wabamun power plant in the final stages before destruction; it had begun generating electricity in 1962 by burning coal mined at large-scale surface operations near Wabamun Lake. The planned closure of the plant is featured in an Edmonton Journal article on April 2, 2010.
    Source: Edmonton Journal

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Safety

Risk of death and injury was a reality that miners and their families lived with every single day. The very nature of the work meant that back injuries and broken bones were a day-to-day hazard. Cave-ins were a constant threat, particularly in operations mining softer coal. A pervasive, long-term health threat came in the form of coal worker’s pneumoconiosis, more commonly known as “black lung,” a respiratory disease that plagued underground miners. Miners who developed the disease suffered from shortness of breath and coughing, and their lungs turned from pink to black. Though mining companies often refused to acknowledge a link between coalmining and “black lung,” miners were fully aware of the dangers posed by inhaling coal dust—oral testimonies and newspaper advertisements yield

evidence of a wide range of home and commercial remedies intended to provide relief. None of these, however, could mediate the long-term health effect of breathing coal dust, and “black lung” remained a pervasive health threat to coal miners through much of the twentieth century. Finally, the most famous threat posed to the health and safety of coal miners was explosion—sparks from pick-axes or falling rocks could ignite pockets of methane gas, killing men instantly and trapping others underground in the resulting cave-in. While the deadliest (and most famous) coal mine disasters in Alberta’s history occurred at Bellevue (1910), Hillcrest (1914) and Nordegg (1941), many other smaller explosions took a terrible toll on the lives of miners in the first half of the twentieth century.

Miners often developed a very stoic attitude about the dangers inherent in the industry. One miner recalled that “if you start to think, today I’m going to get hurt…well, there’d be no one going.” This recognition of danger, however, did not create a sense of passivity among the miners, who organized into unions to push for safer working conditions and stronger government regulation of the industry. The Coal Mines Act, 1906, established a mines branch charged with supervising the industry and required that supervisors be properly certified. The intent may have been good, but the reality of enforcement proved challenging. Insufficient funds were provided for a system that was itself inadequate. The expectation was that each mine would be inspected consistently and without warning, but there were never enough inspectors to surprise all the mines regularly.

Furthermore, the inspectors tended to have close ties to mine management, often being hired directly out of management, and thus reflected the interests of operators rather than of the miners. As well, the interests of operators were driven all too often by the quest for profit rather than by a concern for the safety and welfare of miners, which resulted in situations such as that at West Canadian Collieries in Bellevue, Alberta. An explosion there that killed thirty miners in 1910 has been attributed largely to negligence on the part of both managers and inspectors, although an exact cause was never officially determined, and no criminal charges were laid. The large number of mining disasters in the early twentieth century resulted in some changes to the industry, such as the addition of rescue stations with oxygen tanks, portable breathing units and other equipment at mine sites.

Examples of Coal Mine Fatalities

Year Mine/Location Mine Disaster
1903, April 23 Frank Mine, Frank Approximately ninety dead in the partial collapse of Turtle Mountain
1907, April 3 International Coal, Coleman three dead in coal gas bump explosion
1907, June 8 John Walters Coal Mine, Edmonton six dead in fire
1910, December 9 Bellevue Mine, Bellevue thirty-one dead in explosion
1914, July 19 Hillcrest Mine, Hillcrest 189 dead in explosion
1926, September 19 Hillcrest Mine, Hillcrest three dead in explosion
1926, November 23 McGillivray Creek Coal and Coke, Coleman ten dead in explosion
1935, December 9 Imperial Mine, Coalhurst sixteen dead in explosion
1938, March 30 Hinton Collieries, Hinton five dead in explosion
1939, December 31 Cadomin Coal, Cadomin three dead in explosion
1941, June 24 Western Crown, East Coulee four dead in explosion
1941, October 31 Brazeau Collieries, Nordegg twenty-nine fatalities in Alberta’s third largest mine explosion
1942, August 5 Cadomin Coal, Cadomin five dead in flood
1943, August 9 Kerralta Mine, Lethbridge four dead in explosion
1945, May 12 Luscar Collieries, Coal Branch seven dead in explosion
1950, June 17 Cadomin Coal, Cadomin five dead in flood
1950, November 30 McGillivray Creek Coal and Coke, Coleman two dead in explosion

In this Section

Joseph Louis Sikora, Alberta Mining Hero

The story of Joseph Louis Sikora illuminates the attitude many miners developed.

Coal Conventional Oil Turner Valley Gas Plant Natural Gas Oil Sands Bitumount Electricity & Alternative Energy