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Eldorado Mine (Northwest Territories)
Mine in Port Radium, Northwest Territories, Canada / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Eldorado Mine is a defunct mine located in Port Radium, Northwest Territories, Canada. The site, which covers 12 hectares, is located next to Echo Bay in the shore of Great Bear Lake.[1]
![]() A miner hauling silver and radium ore from the Eldorado, c. 1930 | |
Location | |
---|---|
Location | Port Radium |
Territory | Northwest Territories |
Country | Canada |
Coordinates | 66.085°N 118.038°W / 66.085; -118.038 |
Production | |
Products | Radium, Uranium, Silver, Copper |
History | |
Discovered | 1930 |
Opened | 1932 |
Active | 1932-1940 1942-1960 1975-1982 |
Closed | 1982 |
Owner | |
Company | Echo Bay Mines Ltd |
Year of acquisition | 1975 |
The mine was 270 miles by air north of Yellowknife and approximal 850 miles north of Edmonton.,[2] on the edge of the Arctic Circle[1] and therefore only accessible by small charter aircraft equipped with floats or skis, or larger charter aircraft flying to the south shore of the lake, followed by a boat journey.[2]
Radium, uranium and silver were extracted from the mine during several working periods between 1932 and 1982. Uranium from Eldorado was used in the Manhattan Project. The Eldorado Mine is also known as Port Radium, a name adopted for use at this specific site after 1942. The name Port Radium had previously referred to the post office and wireless radio station at Cameron Bay.