Queens County gold was first discovered in the settlement of Whiteburn in 1884 in the North Queens area. The vein found was very rich and soon proved to be profitable for the owners. The full value of the mine would never be determined, however, due to inefficient equipment and poor management.

Brookfield Mines
After the 1887 discovery of a fissure (a large deposit of gold carrying quartz), the Brookfield Mines became the banner mine of Nova Scotia. The mine was equipped with the most modern equipment for that period including an air compressor plant for operating drills. After a split in the earth’s crust in 1906 concealed the fissure forever, the mine was abandoned.

McGuire Mine
The McGuire mine at one point produced about 20 pounds of gold in 11 days which turned a profit of $4400, a mighty sum in 1886. However only three years later, the mine failed to produce enough to stay open and it closed.

Local Prospecting
By 1892 there were only two mines open that produced any significant amount of gold, the Molega Mining Company and the Boston Gold Mining Company. Most gold from 1894 until 1934 was found by local prospectors rather than mining corporations. In 1938, a fifty-ton capacity mill was built in Molega, keeping the site open for only another eight years.