GOLD and other stories

The Pioneer Prospectors of Saskatchewan, and the many transient prospectors from across Canada who added their efforts and expertise to prospecting in Saskatchewan, and to the Indian and Metis trappers of northern Saskatchewan who brought many important mineral occurrences to the attention of the White Man.

In the middle 1970s, Berry Richards of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, recorded on audio tapes interviews with prospectors, miners, geologists, businessmen, and government officials who could recall impressions, facts, fancies, and, above all, stories about the activities of prospectors and miners in northern Saskatchewan.

Richards then entered a new career as a freelance journalist. He undertook the editing of the tapes himself and prepared a manuscript which he submitted to his friend Eric Partridge. At Partridge's insistence the then President of the Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA), John Kalmet, and the Manager, Dr. Ralph L. Cheesman, met with Richards at Partridge's home in Prince Albert on July 8, 1981. They then concluded an agreement whereby SMA undertook to publish a book based on Richards' manuscript augmented by photographs from the Saskatchewan Archives and other collections, with the intention of distributing it widely to schools in Saskatchewan and to the mining fraternity.

On May 18, 1982, Berry Richards died in Prince Albert of cancer. The manuscript at the time of his death still needed considerable technical editing and I undertook this task for the SMA. My guiding principle was to keep as much of the flavour of the tapes as well as of Richards' editorial spirit in the book. This meant confining myself to correcting obvious mistakes, adding explanatory notes, and re-writing for clarity only. Also, more by chance than design, I could add some more photographs of bush life in northern Saskatchewan.

Beresford Robert Richards was born in 1914. He graduated with a B.Sc. degree in Mining Engineering from the University of Alberta in 1940, after which he spent over 30 years in mineral exploration in northern Manitoba, northern Saskatchewan, and western Mexico. In the one-page resume that Richards submitted to the SMA he puts the greatest stress on his teaching experience at Prospectors' Schools in La Ronge and Uranium City, as well as at the Natonum Community College in Prince Albert. He mentions his community awareness class for the Metis Society of Saskatchewan and also his work with Native people in the field. Richards worked as a prospector for consulting geologists and mine promoters. One of these was C.A.L. (Vern) Hogg, now of Calgary, who, when informed about Berry Richards' passing, wrote me:

"I was saddened to learn that Berry has taken his last portage. He carried out several projects for me in northern Saskatchewan after I set up my consulting business in 1957, and he always performed in a most satisfactory manner" He did the first work on my Nyberg Lakes iron discovery in 1960. He also wrote the Engineer's Report on Flin Flon Mines' property near Flin Flon, Manitoba, for our first prospectus in 1969. His recommendations and conclusions have come true with a production start-up of a gold mine expected in January 1984.

Although I met Berry Richards on several occasions in the 1950s and 60s and was also one of his subjects in the taping exercise, I cannot claim to have known him as well as Murray Dobbin, who, in his eulogy, said:

"For those who knew Berry Richards, there is scarcely any need to talk about all the contributions he made to the struggle for a better world. More important perhaps is to make the point that he never stopped making those contributions". What struck many people was Berry's refusal to give up. It was his enthusiasm, his mischievous humour, his generosity and his lack of cynicism, even in the face of reaction and defeats, which gave him a special place in people's hearts.

From correspondence Berry Richards had with Ralph Cheesman, it follows that he would have wished to thank certain agencies and individuals who helped him in the preparation of the present book. Specifically he mentioned Eric Partridge, prospector, of Prince Albert, Lorne Sparling, Principal of Prince Albert's Carleton High School, and his [Richards'] ex-wife, Mabel, a writer in Victoria, B.C. The Saskatchewan Department of Culture and Youth (as it was then called, now the Department of Culture and Recreation) supported the collection of the material used in this book during the summers of 1975 and 1976. Many of the photographs reproduced here were provided by the Saskatchewan Archives. Richards wished to give credit to the many men and women who shared their experiences with him; to his many friends and associates who provided invaluable criticism, without which this book would be less than it is; and especially to the few of the interviewees who have passed on since the material was collected - the most valuable correspondents, as they tended to be the oldest, and could look farthest into the past.

To Richards' thanks I should like to add mine to the Honourable Justice John H. Maher of Saskatoon who, as a young man, spent a summer in the North where he recorded in photographs the daily life of a geological exploration party. Earl Dodds of Prince Albert not only contributed photographs but also added some of his recollections about the time when he took his pilot's training and when he first joined the Saskatchewan Department of Natural Resources. The extensive collection of photographs built up by Robert K. Aaberg, now of Saskatoon, during his 30-year residency in Uranium City provided some further illustrative material. In the Saskatchewan Archives, Saskatoon office, Lloyd W. Rodwell was most helpful in guiding me through large holdings of historic photographs. I am indebted to Dr. S.J.T. Kirkland, Regina, for helping me with the captions of some of these photos. Mr. Meleo S. Pechet of Cochituate, Massachusetts provided a 1939 photograph of the Box Mine, Goldfields, where he worked when a young man.

John A. Randall, now of Guanajuato, Mexico, when he attended the University of Saskatchewan, collected much historical information on prospecting, geological mapping, and mining in the La Ronge district. Having access to these notes, I have made use of them to clarify the original text in a few appropriate places.This is also the place to express John Randall's gratitude for the help he received through oral communications and letters from D. Studer, W. Nemanishen, and W. Curle.

I am much indebted to all those who helped me prepare Berry Richards' manuscript for the printers. In particular, I learned a great deal from Stan D. Hanson, University Archivist, on how to deal with the final stages of publication. His involvement in this phase became so great and he saved me from so many potential embarrassments that his co-editorship is well earned.

Finally, both Stan Hanson and I are grateful for the assistance we received from Angie Heppner and Susan Bedford in the compilation of Appendix C and the Index and from David Salt and Malcolm Reeves in getting us over some computer rough spots.