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Blairton Mine

a coloured etching from the Canadian Illustrated News dated February 15, 1873 with at least 20 men performing various tasks in a deep open faced mine. At the top of the mine and the centre of the etching is a large derrick help in place by multiple guy wires. Behind the derrick is a row of railway cars

Blairton Mine, Canadian Illustrated News, February 15, 1873

Credit: Marmora Historical Foundation

The development of this mine by industrialists from Pittsburgh brought renewed life to the railway and, consequently, the harbour. The railway ore cars were commissioned from James Crossen of Cobourg and were the first major undertaking of what became the very successful Crossen Car Company. The derrick has been faithfully reproduced in scale as part of the outdoor railway at Cobourg’s Sifton-Cook Heritage Centre.