The Brechin Mine

Abstract

As mentioned earlier, the V.C.M. & L. Co. expanded the number of mines and greatly increased the tonnage of coal shipped from Nanaimo. The mines were known both by names and numbers. Number One Mine, for instance, was known as the Esplanade and was the scene of the 1887 disaster. In 1899, the company was reorganized and in 1903 sold to the Western Fuel Co. of San Francisco. This company was eventually bought out by Canadian Collieries (Dunsmuir) Ltd. The large Brechin Mine Number Four seen in this photograph operated from 1904-1918.