Join the Ladysmith & District Historical Society October 8, at 7 pm, for a General Membership Meeting, which will include a review of ongoing society activities, to be followed with Barrie McDonald presenting stories and photos about Ladysmith’s Tyee Copper Smelter.

“Such is the reputation of [the Tyee Copper Company] and of the smelter that Ladysmith has come to be widely known as the Smelter City …”wrote The Daily Colonist, December 13, 1908.

The story of Ladysmith’s copper smelter, the “Tyee” smelter, is an important part of Ladysmith’s industrial heritage. The story involves a staking rush on Mt. Sicker, a mining town on Mt. Sicker that peaked at about 1,700 people, Dunsmuir family rivalries, smelters being constructed the same year in both Crofton and Ladysmith and huge construction projects completed within astonishingly short timeframes.

“It is an interesting Ladysmith story, a waterfront story, and the start of our ‘cadmium problem’ in the harbour,” says McDonald.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to find out how history continues to play a role into our present day,” says Quentin Goodbody, president of the LDHS.

The group is working on future talks that will explore contemporary topics through a historical lens. Some topics being considered are The Big One — Ladysmith and Earthquakes; Ladysmith’s water supply; Forest Fires and the Ladysmith area; and Ladysmith — landscape, geology and natural endowment. Suggestions of topics are welcome, says Goodbody.

Open to the public, the meeting and talk will be held in the Lower Level Meeting Room, 7 pm,  at the Frank Jameson Community Centre in Ladysmith. Everyone welcome. For more information, phone the Ladysmith Archives at 250-245-0100.

The Ladysmith Museum, Ladysmith Archives and the Comox Logging Historical Site Industrial Preservation Group are operated by the non-profit Ladysmith & District Historical Society.