Buchans

Buchans is a town located in the central part of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is situated on the northwest shore of Red Indian Lake on the Buchans River.

The town is located within the statistical unit of Census Division No. 6, approximately 72 kilometres southwest of the Trans-Canada Highway at the terminus of Route 370. According to Statistics Canada, it had a population of 696 in 2011, with 351 private dwellings.

Its current mayor is Derm Corbett.

Discovery and mining history

In 1905 the Anglo-Newfoundland Development Company (AND) was granted mineral rights to 2,320 sq mi (6,000 km²) of central Newfoundland for 99 years; any commercial mining would result in payment of a 5% royalty to the Dominion of Newfoundland.

Mattie Mitchell, a prospector and guide of Mi'kmaq and Montagnais ancestry employed by AND is credited with the original discovery of zinc-lead-copper ore on the banks of the Buchans River. Most accounts state that he made his discovery early in the summer of 1905. Unfortunately, no milling process at the time could adequately separate the complex mixture of copper, lead and zinc sulphides. AND co did try to mine this site seasonally from 1906 until 1911.