[BCMA] Sat. May 4 - Britannia Mine Museum Hosts Family Fun Day During BC Mining Week

Tue Apr 23 01:11:49 PDT 2013

For immediate release
April 23, 2013

Britannia Mine Museum Hosts Family Fun Day As Part of BC Mining Week
Saturday, May 4, 2013
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Photo: Britannia Mine Museum's Super Haul Truck

Britannia Beach, BC  The Britannia Mine Museum is hosting a special Family
Fun Day as part of BC Mining Week on Saturday, May 4. From 10 a.m. to 4
p.m., visitors of all ages can enjoy family friendly activities including
gold panning races, pony rides and yummy cookie mining for kids, as well as
learn how mining influences our daily lives through exhibits and educational
resources. A blacksmith will also be on site demonstrating his craft as he
forges and shapes metal into interesting objects.

BC Mining Week takes place April 28  May 4 with events taking place all
over British Columbia, recognizing and celebrating the importance of mining
as one of BC¹s largest and oldest industries.

The Britannia Mine Museum has an important role in educating the public
about the contributions of mining and minerals to society, the history of
the storied Britannia Beach community and the ideas and practices of
environmental renewal and sustainability.

At the Britannia Mine Museum, visitors can not only enjoy the fun exhibits
and crowd favourites like the underground mine train, the historic 20-storey
concentrator mill and gold panning, they can also learn about Britannia¹s
history as one of the most productive copper mines in the British
Commonwealth in the 1930s.

The Museum offers exciting venues for exploration, discovery and local arts
and culture, featuring:

* Underground Mine & Train Ride  A memorable underground train that takes
visitors deep inside a mining tunnel where they will experience what life
was like for miners in the 70 years Britannia existed as a mine (1904-1974).
They will learn about the drills and machines the miners used and understand
the mineralization process and rich colours produced as minerals are exposed
to water and air.

* Historic Mill Building - A National Historic Site and one of the last
remaining gravity-fed concentrator mills in North America, the 20-storey
Mill Building is an awe-inspiring cliff-side building that has been the
symbol of Britannia throughout the years. Restored in 2007, each of the
14,416 panes of glass was hand-puttied into the frames to maintain its
heritage and the building can be seen from miles away on the Sea-to-Sky
highway.

* Beaty-Lundin Visitor Centre  The central exhibit hall that houses several
theatrical mining displays and a mineral gallery, theatre space, gift shop,
an interactive ³Kids Playce² area and the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame where
visitors can learn about Canadian mining pioneers.

* A-Z Administration Building  A fully restored heritage building that is
now an exhibition centre to showcase the stories of the Britannia Beach
community from 1904 to 1974. From love letters and antiques to historic
photos and videos of former Copper Queens, the exhibits will show what life
was like in the old mining town.

* Gold Panning Area  A scenic boardwalk and cedar-post covered area where
people can spend hours panning for real gold or visit the restored heritage
buildings nearby.

* Machine Shop  The 1908 Machine Shop is home to a number of historic
machines and equipment donated by mining companies from across the country.
The building also features several unique art exhibits throughout the year.

* Core Sheds  An immense archive of rock core samples drilled from the
mountainside and collected throughout Britannia¹s mining years.

* Family Play Area  Young and old alike can play in this expanded sunlit,
protected, mining-themed play area where they can have fun in a Super Haul
truck and imagine themselves as miners using toy diggers, trucks and
hoppers. 

The Family Fun Day activities are sponsored by Finning and Orica and are
free for members or by regular admission.

The Britannia Mine Museum is open seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
with guided tours throughout the day. Visit www.britanniaminemuseum.ca for
more details or call 1-800-896-4044 for more information.

About the Britannia Mine Museum:
The Britannia Mine Museum is a mining legacy site and a vibrant,
internationally recognized education and tourist destination located between
Vancouver and Whistler on the Sea-to-Sky highway. It is a National Historic
Site and a non-profit organization encouraging mining awareness through
entertaining, experiential education programs and exhibits, important
historic collection preservation and insightful public engagement that
allows guests to leave with a better understanding of mining in BC; past,
present and future. www.britanniaminemuseum.ca.

-30-

Media contact:  

Yvonne Chiang, Publicist
Britannia Mine Museum
604-880-5090
E: yvonne at blueskycommunications.ca
W: www.britanniaminemuseum.ca

T: www.twitter.com/BritanniaMine
F: www.facebook.com/BritanniaMineMuseum
<http://www.facebook.com/BritanniaMineMuseum>

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