Between the years 1862 and 1976, 1.1 million ounces of gold were mined from 65 gold districts throughout Nova Scotia. These hard rock gold mines were among the earliest in Canada, preceding by decades all but British Columbia’s major gold discoveries. Many Canadian gold mining techniques were pioneered in Nova Scotia, and the mines themselves drew international attention.

Despite this early start and the fact that these mines were the training grounds for many men who went on to work the more famous gold fields(including NS prospector Robert Henderson, co-discoverer of gold in the Klondike), the story of gold mining in Nova Scotia is one that has been all but buried. With our partners the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, the NS Department of Natural Resources, the NS Museum of Natural History and Nova Scotia Archives and Records Management, we are working on a project on Nova Scotia gold. We will be examining the story of gold in Nova Scotia from a number of perspectives, including its natural history, mining gold, the consequences of mining practices in the past, gold mining today, artists and the industrial landscape, and uses of gold.

We will add to this web site as the project progresses.