Barton Mine, also known as Net Lake Mine, is an abandoned surface and underground mine in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. It is located about north of the Temagami Arena in Temagami North and just east of the Ontario Northland Railway in northwestern Strathy Township. Dating back to the early 1900s, it is one of the oldest mines in Temagami. Barton was the site of a fire in the early 1900s, after which it never had active mining again. Molybdenum was the primary commodity mined at Barton. Secondary commodities included gold, silver, copper and bismuth. They were mined in a geological feature forming the surrounding landscape, which hosts several other mines in the area. Although Barton has been shut down since the early 1900s, it is still an active mineral field. However, the mine has not had any mineral exploration activity since the 1960s. It is named after J.W. Barton, who was a miner at Barton.
History
Background
Barton is one of the 308 molybdenum occurrences in Ontario, as well as one of the several molybdenum mines in Ontario that had minor production during World War I. Practically all of Ontario's molybdenum production occurred during this period, mostly from hand-cobbing operations. Molybdenite, a soft metallic mineral resembling graphite, is the most common ore of molybdenum and is the only one of economic significance found in Ontario.
Development and exploration
Development was carried out from 1906 to 1918. In 1906, J.W. Barton of Gold Reef Company Limited discovered molybdenum and copper ore with gold and silver values. This led to the formation of a shaft with headframe, hoist and pump, several test pits and rock trenches in molybdenite showings, as well as a mining camp and boiler house. About of material was removed during this period. The discovery of gold is what started the original work at Barton. However, gold values proved to be low, resulting in the change to molybdenum mining. This operation was referred to as the Net Lake Molybdenite claims. By 1911, the world had learned the commercial importance of molybdenum in strengthening steel. However, it was not widely used until World War I when molybdenum was urgently needed to manufacture guns, as well as armour plating for military machines. In 1918, near the end of World War I, J.W. Barton shipped of hand-cobbed ore to Ottawa for recovery of of molybdenum disulfide. This was followed by a fire that destroyed the camp and boiler house. Mining operations were not renewed after the disaster occurred. However, the demand for molybdenum fell drastically at the end of World War I and other molybdenum mines in Ontario were shut down. The total Ontario molybdenum production in 1918 was, totaling C$59,067. In 1956, Aumo Porcupine Mines Limited did a self-potential survey for copper and nickel mineralization at Barton. This was followed by a diamond drill program in 1958 performed by S. Ciglen. In 1965–1966, Myteque Mines Limited carried out geological, electromagnetic and geomagnetic surveys, as well as extensive surface work. The mine site was withdrawn from staking in 1968 under the Mining Act.
