Cobalt Heritage Silver Trail
The Cobalt Heritage Silver Trail is a unique outdoor museum consisting of mine headframes, mill sites, adits, mined surface silver veins, and original mining equipment used in the Cobalt Mining Camp that rapidly developed after the discovery of rich silver ore deposits in 1903.
You can take a self-guided tour with the assistance of the printed Trail Guide, which includes maps and site descriptions. During summer hours, guided tours are available including entrance into one of the adits where you can get a sense of what was involved for the miners extracting the silver ore from the ground.
The preservation, restoration and development of the Cobalt Heritage Silver Trail has been an ongoing process supported by the Town of Cobalt, Coleman Township, Cobalt Historical Society, 3 levels of government, local businesses and individuals.
It's purpose is to keep alive the history and knowledge regarding the contribution made by the Cobalt Camp to the development of mining, locally, provincially and nationally. Visitors will also have a first hand look at the life and working conditions that the early miners faced in order to satisfy the demand for our natural resources - silver and it's related minerals.
About the Collections
The mines, mills and equipment at each of the 19 sites tell the story of the development of silver mining in Ontario. Bilingual signage at each site illustrates its significance and tells something of the life led in this Silver boom mining camp.
A collection of mining equipment has been assembled and displayed at the Jack Koza Milling and Mining Machinery Park located beside Cobalt Lake and also at the Willet Green Millar Memorial Site at location #14 on the Cobalt Heritage Silver Trail.
Human History
At each of the 19 sites along the Cobalt Heritage Silver Trail, bilingual interpretive signage including historical photographs, describe the importance of silver mining in the Cobalt Camp mines both locally and with regards to development of the mining industry provincially and nationally.
Industrial Technology and History
•
Local History
Natural Sciences
The Cobalt Heritage Silver Trail is located directly on site where silver and related minerals were extracted. Samples of rocks, minerals and even drill core pieces can be found by the keen eyed visitor at many of the sites.
Earth Science and Geological Collections
Minerals •
Rocks •
Drill Cores
Services & Activities
Educational Programs
Bilingual guided tours can be arranged for your group and knowledgeable guides will bring the story of the Cobalt Mining Camp to Life.
The Trail Guide produced by the Cobalt Historical Society is more than just a map of site locations. You can read a brief history on the development of Cobalt Camp, find a summary of the general geology of the area, a list of local minerals and a glossary of commonly used mining terms and see the figures on silver production in the Cobalt Camp from 1904 to 1923.
Demonstrations
Publications and Products
Trail Guide
Map
Location
| Address: |
18 Silver Street, P.O. Box 309 Cobalt, Ontario P0J 1C0 See Map |
|---|---|
| Telephone: | (705) 697-5070 |
Hours of Operation
Operations:
Year Round
Self guided tours are available all year. However, interpretive guided tours are available mainly during the summer months, June to September.
Open: The trail is an outdoor exhibit available to the public for self guided as well as guided tours so the opening hours would nominally be dawn to dusk.
Admission:
Free
