Canada becomes a major iron ore producerHow the Labrador Trough became the epicentre of Canadian iron ore mining in the 1950s

How the Labrador Trough became the epicentre of Canadian iron ore mining in the 1950s

By Ailbhe Goodbody

January 17, 2025

IOC mining operations in Schefferville (CIM Bulletin, September 1978).

The first reference to iron in the Labrador Trough, a geologic belt hosting world-class iron deposits that extends for approximately 1,100 kilometres through Labrador and Quebec, was made by Father Louis Babel, who travelled in the area from 1866 to 1870, according to H.E. Neal (Explor. Mining Geol., Vol. 9, No. 2, pp. 113-121, 2000).

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