Books, Art, Music and Photography About Mining and Northern Topics – Page 5

Excerpt from ‘Miner Indiscretions’ – by Jon Ardeman

October 6, 2017

To order a copy of “Miner Indiscretions”: http://amzn.to/2hMreNl

Since graduating Jon Ardeman’s geological career has been in many guises; in exploration, mining, consultancy, conservation and research. He has worked as a National Park guide, a nature warden looking after tadpoles and orchids, as a researcher digging up cow shed floors looking for Ordovician brachiopods and preparing dinosaur bones for a museum display. Enthused by these experiences, Jon sought further adventures, and headed to Africa where he worked as a geologist on various mines for more than a decade.

He returned to university and after a few years of academic research and consultancy, Jon went back to mining and precious metal exploration. His travels have taken him from the Arctic to the Equator, from North America and Siberia, to Europe, Australia, Asia and back to Africa.

During this time, Jon wrote several “mystery and imagination” short stories for magazines and competitions, but his inspiration for a first novel ‘Miner Indiscretions’ came from get-togethers with fellow prospectors and miners; with the story embellished by imagination, cold beer, a hint of the supernatural and – of course – dreams of African gold! The author is married with several children and now resides in Hertfordshire, England.

Overview

A hilarious, action-packed story following Timothy, who starts his career as a junior geologist on a modern deep gold mine in South Africa. Unexpectedly and ignominiously dismissed from this post; he manages to get a new job exploring for gold on the dilapidated Yellow Snake Mine in rural KwaZulu-Natal.

Excerpt from ‘Miner Indiscretions’ – by Jon Ardeman

October 4, 2017

To order a copy of “Miner Indiscretions”: http://amzn.to/2hMreNl

Overview

Excerpt from J.P. BICKELL: The Life, the Leafs, and the Legacy – by Jason Wilson, Kevin Shea and Graham MacLachlan

October 3, 2017

To order a copy of “J.P. BICKELL: The Life, the Leafs, and the Legacy”: https://www.dundurn.com/books/JP-Bickell

Jason Wilson is a bestselling Canadian author, a two-time Juno Awards Nominee, and an Adjunct Professor of History at the University of Guelph. He has performed and recorded with UB40, Ron Sexsmith, Pee Wee Ellis, and Dave Swarbrick. Jason lives in Stouffville, Ontario.

Kevin Shea is a renowned hockey historian and bestselling author of fourteen hockey books. He is the Editor of Publications and Online Features for the Hockey Hall of Fame, a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs Historical Committee, and a founding member of Road Hockey to Conquer Cancer. Kevin lives in Toronto.

Graham MacLachlan is a relative of J.P. Bickell who has an extensive business background in international trade that is equalled by his involvement in hockey in the IIHF, the WHL, Hockey Canada, Hockey Alberta, and Hockey Calgary. Graham lives in Calgary, Alberta.

OVERVIEW

He stayed out of the spotlight, but Leafs fans know J.P. Bickell cast a long shadow.

A self-made mining magnate and the man who kept the Maple Leafs in Toronto and financed Maple Leaf Gardens, J.P. Bickell lived an extraordinary and purposeful life. As one of the most important industrialists in Canadian history, Bickell left his mark on communities across the nation. He was a cornerstone of the Toronto Maple Leafs, which awards the J.P. Bickell Memorial Award to recognize outstanding service to the organization.

Bickell’s story is also tied up with some of the most famous Canadians of his day, including Mitchell Hepburn, Roy Thomson, and Conn Smythe. Through his charitable foundation, he has been a key benefactor of the Hospital for Sick Children, and his legacy continues to transform Toronto. Yet, though Bickell was so important both to Toronto and the Maple Leafs, the story of his incredible life is today largely obscure. This book sets the record straight, presenting the definitive story of his rise to prominence and his lasting legacy — on the ice and off.

Excerpt from J.P. BICKELL: The Life, the Leafs, and the Legacy – by Jason Wilson, Kevin Shea and Graham MacLachlan

September 28, 2017

To order a copy of “J.P. BICKELL: The Life, the Leafs, and the Legacy”: https://www.dundurn.com/books/JP-Bickell

OVERVIEW

He stayed out of the spotlight, but Leafs fans know J.P. Bickell cast a long shadow.

Excerpt from J.P. BICKELL: The Life, the Leafs, and the Legacy – by Jason Wilson, Kevin Shea and Graham MacLachlan

September 25, 2017

To order a copy of “J.P. BICKELL: The Life, the Leafs, and the Legacy”: https://www.dundurn.com/books/JP-Bickell

OVERVIEW

He stayed out of the spotlight, but Leafs fans know J.P. Bickell cast a long shadow.

1978-79 Steelworkers strike subject of Mick Lowe’s new novel – by Heidi Ulrichsen (Sudbury Northern Life – May 3, 2017)

May 3, 2017

https://www.sudbury.com/

Local author has completed trilogy about city’s mining history

Given it’s a part of the city’s recent history, most Sudburians remember Steelworkers Local 6500’s nearly year-long 2009-2010 strike against Vale. More distant in the community’s collective memory is the arguably even more bitter labour dispute that happened a generation earlier.

Steelworkers Local 6500 went on strike against Vale’s predecessor, Inco, for 10 and a half months from Sept. 15, 1978 until June 7, 1979. The labour dispute, which involved 11,600 workers, and starved Inco of more than 22 million hours of labour, smashed records at the time for the longest strike in Canadian history.

The impact on the Sudbury community was devastating, with businesses closing, marriages breaking up and families losing their life savings. The 1978-1979 Steelworkers strike is the subject of local author Mick Lowe’s latest novel, “Wintersong.” It’s the third in the Nickel Range Trilogy fiction series, which focuses on Sudbury’s mining history.

Comics hero Big Nick ‘pretty versatile’ – by Ben Leeson (Sudbury Star – April 18, 2017)

April 19, 2017

http://www.thesudburystar.com/

Click here to donate to their kickstarter initiative: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/666555592/big-nick-2?ref=nav_search

Big Nick scarcely has time to celebrate keeping Sudbury and Canada safe before battling his latest subterranean scourge, the colossal Bedrock Titan, in the latest offering from Expired Comics.

Big Nick #2 follows the adventures of Sudbury’s very own superhero, a former mine rescue worker trapped in a mine shaft, only to emerge 30 years later, not a day older, but armed with mysterious powers including the ability to grow so large he can wield the iconic Big Nickel as a shield.

The return of Big Nick: Sudbury superhero’s second issue to launch at Graphic-Con (CBC News Sudbury – April 12, 2017)

April 13, 2017

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/

Click here to donate to their kickstarter initiative: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/666555592/big-nick-2?ref=nav_search

A superhero that started out as a “thank you” to the city of Sudbury has turned into Expired Comics’ most requested character. Big Nick 2 is set to launch this June at Sudbury’s Graphic-Con, and the hero’s co-creators are surprised at how much attention he’s received.

“At this point, Big Nick has gone on to sell across Canada and the U.S,” said Kevin Montpellier, co-owner of Expire Comics. “He resonates with a lot of people. There’s a liking for the character that even we didn’t anticipate.” “It’s not huge numbers, but we never expected to see a Sudbury character in an international market,” Montpellier said.

Poland’s Kings of Coal – Photo Essay by Tomasz Tomaszewski (Social Documentary Network)

October 20, 2016

http://viewfind.com/

Poland-Faces blackened with coal, miners in Upper Silesia emerge from beneath the surface and blink into the Polish twilight – just as they have been doing for hundreds of years.

When photojournalist Tomasz Tomaszewski showed up, however, he found an industry flailing amidst global competition and a Western World hungry for green energy, leaving the proud Polish miner a dying breed.

“When the time comes to work, The Silesian miner works relentlessly. When a colleague must be saved from death, he does not hesitate to walk into danger. The Silesian miner, along with his comrade the steelworker, is one of the most valuable members of Polish socity,” wrote Gustaw Mocinek in Upper Silesia, a book about gritty Polish communities written in 1950.

Gold Rush Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Nellie Cashman – by Thora Kerr Illing

October 14, 2016

To order a copy of “Gold Rush Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Nellie Cashman”, click here: http://www.touchwoodeditions.com/cart.php?action=update_item_dropdown&Quantity=1&isbn_upc=9781771511599

Thora Kerr Illing is a former journalist and librarian. She immigrated to Canada as a young woman and fell in love with the space, the fjords, and the forests of the west. Now retired, she lives in Sidney, BC, and loves travel, books, nature and animals.

A biography of the extraordinary Nellie Cashman, a well-loved miner, entrepreneur and philanthropist who lived and worked in the roughest boomtowns of the West in the late-nineteenth century.

At a time when well-bred women wore tight corsets and entertained each other at tea, Nellie Cashman (1845–1925) was trekking for hundreds of miles through blizzard conditions to deliver food and supplies to trapped miners in Northern BC.

Stompin’ Tom legacy tour returns to where it all began – by John Emms (Timmins Daily Press – October 7, 2016)

October 7, 2016

http://www.timminspress.com/

TIMMINS – Stompin’ Tom Connors died in 2013 at 77 years of age, but his iconic status known from coast to coast and his hundreds of songs and stories are still very much alive. The city and residents of Timmins have a unique part in his legend.

As Canada turns 150 years old in 2017, there is no question that Stompin’ Tom’s music is part of our Timmins and Canadian heritage

In fact, these songs and stories will be celebrated in Timmins on Friday, Oct. 14 at Charles Fournier Auditorium at École secondaire catholique Thériault when Whiskey Jack performs its national tour here in our city. It’s going to be one heck of a night when the sounds of Bud The Spud, Sudbury Saturday Night and the Hockey Song fill the auditorium.

Sudbury celebrates Stompin’ Tom – by Ben Leeson (Sudbury Star – October 3, 2016)

October 3, 2016

http://www.thesudburystar.com/

Sudburians who came together last month to celebrate an iconic musician and one of his most iconic songs now have their own music video.

Downtown Sudbury, the Townehouse Tavern and local businessman Colin Firth unveiled Sudbury Celebrates Stompin’ Tom at the Townhouse on Saturday night. The video includes a spirited rendition of Sudbury Saturday Night, performed by a boisterous crowd that gathered on Grey Street, near the bronze statue of the late Stompin’ Tom Connors, on Sept. 24.

It also includes commentary from Tannys Laughren, who was a member of the Stompin’ Tom statue committee; Paul Loewenberg, manager at the Townehouse; and Firth, a driving force behind the community event last month. “It was a couple months of getting it all together and we finished up the final video just in the last day or so, and I’m very excited,” Firth said, a few hours before the video’s premiere.

Miners museum in Glace Bay in race against time to repair building – by George Mortimer (CBC News Nova Scotia – September 27, 2016)

September 27, 2016

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/

‘It’s like living in a sieve,’ says museum director Mary Pat Mombourquette

The Cape Breton Miners Museum in Glace Bay, N.S., is struggling to raise money on its own while making a plea for government funding to save it from closure.

A building audit done more than a year ago identified a badly leaking roof, air quality issues originating in the building’s distinctive tower and other structural problems, according to museum director Mary Pat Mombourquette.

“The ceiling keeps collapsing. We’re losing more and more every day, and with the rain we lose a good chunk,” she said. “There’s problems with the foundation, problems with the walls, with the window, with the doors. Everything is leaking heat and everything is letting in rain. It’s like living in a sieve.”

New video to celebrate ‘Sudbury Saturday Night’ (Sudbury Star – September 20, 2016)

September 22, 2016

http://www.thesudburystar.com/

Stompin’ Tom Connors and Sudbury have always had a special affiliation thanks to the Canadian Music icon’s famous song “Sudbury Saturday Night”. On Saturday, Sudburians will have the chance to thank Stompin’ Tom Connors for his music and help create a professionally produced music video for the legendary song, “Sudbury Saturday Night.”

The music video will be shot on Grey Street, outside of The Townehouse Tavern (on the lower roof level), the location where Stompin’ Tom wrote and first performed his legendary song about our hometown.

“Sudbury Celebrates Stompin’ Tom” is a joint effort between The Townehouse Tavern, Downtown Sudbury and local businessman Colin Firth. Collectively, the group’s members believe it is time that Sudbury got together to celebrate Stompin’ Tom Connors to say thanks to the legendary Canadian icon by singing his famous song “Sudbury Saturday Night.”

Excerpt from Sun Dogs and Yellowcake: Gunnar Mines – A Canadian Story – by Patricia Sandberg

September 20, 2016

To order a copy of Sun Dogs and Yellowcake: Gunnar Mines – A Canadian Story, click here: http://patriciasandberg.com/purchase-book/

Patricia Sandberg was formerly a partner at DuMoulin Black, a Vancouver law firm acting for mining companies listed on Canadian and international stock exchanges. Her clients had mining operations in Canada, the United States, China, and Latin America. Three generations of her family, including Patricia as a child, lived at Gunnar and her grandfather spent thirty years working at mines run by Gilbert LaBine, Canada’s “Father of Uranium.”

Shooting the Elephant

Re-enter Gilbert LaBine, some twenty years after his radium score and now sixty-two years old. LaBine, in his nominal positions as president and director of Eldorado, was well informed about Eldorado’s moves in the Beaverlodge area. He was also not averse to conducting a little business of his own.

His first foray was with a highly competent, experienced pilot named John “Johnny” Nesbitt, who had spent his life flying in Canada’s north country, including for Eldorado and its Great Bear Lake operations. When Eldorado switched its focus to Lake Athabasca, Nesbitt added the Beaverlodge operation to his flight path.