Buchans - Company Town History

Company Town History

Most of the employees working on the development of the mine, construction of the town, and construction of the railway were housed in temporary camps. The first worker's home in Buchans was completed on March 13, 1927; twenty-six homes were completed by the end of that year. By the time of first concentrate production in September 1928, there were 56 housing units, an apartment house, a staff house, hospital, a town hall, and several bunkhouses in the town. Several businesses including a retail store, a laundromat and a barber shop had also been established. Both the company and the Roman Catholic Church opened schools in the town. In 1929, the company constructed tennis courts, a ski run, an athletic field, and, in winter months, converted one of its concentrate sheds into a skating rink. Buchans had running water, sewage, electricity, and other services in place by 1928. The town would grow in size and prosper throughout the next few decades.

After the Buchans highway was opened in 1956, several families who wished to own their own houses independent of the company-administered town settled on the banks of the Buchans River at the point where the highway crossed it, in a settlement known as "Pigeon Inlet." This settlement was named after the fictional community of "Pigeon Inlet" created by Newfoundland writer Ted Russell.

There were four official strikes in the history of Buchans mining operation. The first was in 1941 and lasted 15 days. The second, involving just miners, happened in 1955 and lasted 36 days. The third strike lasted from June 12 to November 12, 1971. The fourth, final and longest strike lasted from March 15 to October 2, 1973.

In 1963 these houses were re-located to a subdivision on the southeast corner of town. The subdivision, which became known as "Townsite" became the Local Improvement District of Buchans. Residents of "Townsite" owned their own homes and managed municipal affairs independently of Asarco. On October 1, 1978, the company town became a separate local improvement district. The two municipal governments merged to form the first democratically elected municipal government for the entire town on June 18, 1979.