Synopsis
If it wasn’t for a meteor strike 1.8 billion years ago, Sudbury would be little more than a stopover on the Canadian Pacific Railway. This meteor’s impact with the earth’s crust created vast deposits of nickel, and, to a lesser extent, Copper, Gold, and other precious metals that were not discovered until 1853, when Albert Salter’s survey compass began acting erratically. But it wasn’t until the 1880’s, when industrialist Samuel Ritchie convinced his financial backers from Ohio to invest in the Canadian Cooper Company, that the area’s mines began to appear. Since the discovery that nickel-iron alloys had incredible strength in the 1890’s, Sudbury’s fortunes have been tied to the United States - rising with each declaration of war, and falling with each defeat or peace treaty. A barren landscape has been the cost of Sudbury’s mineral wealth. The social and environmental legacy created by the nickel industry has left Sudbury with a tarnished image - devoid of animal and plant life. Riches Beyond Our Rocks is the story of Sudbury’s struggle to balance prosperity and progress, with its social and environmental responsibilities.

This project was produced in cooperation with the Living History Multimedia Association, with funding from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, FedNor and the City of Greater Sudbury. It is part of the Ontario Visual Heritage Project.