After more than 30 years, the Rotary Club has passed on stewardship of the driving tour signs throughout the valley.
Other partners included the Atlas Coal Mine, who helped them research each site and provide images for each sign. The Royal Tyrrell Museum helped with the design and layout of each new sign. HB Industries modified and installed the new signs.
The new placards are constructed of a weather, UV and graffiti proof material and are expected to last for years. The whole project cost in the area of $35,000, and took three years from planning and fundraising to installation.
On Wednesday, July 27, the Rotary Club officially handed over the stewardship of the signs to the Atlas Coal Mine.
Executive director of the Atlas Coal Mine Linda Digby said taking care of the signs fits with the mandate of the Atlas Coal Mine.
“Rotary asked us to take over custodianship of the signs when we began this project a couple of years ago. We said yes because it is a good fit for our mandate,” said Digby. “Our mandate is to preserve and present Drumheller’s coal mining history, from one end of the valley to the other: Nacmine to East Coulee, Wayne to Willow Creek. The historic mine markers are another way to present the story of the mining years, which founded Drumheller.”
The signs were originally erected in the mid seventies. Some Rotarians involved in the project to install them were Jim Fisher and Loris Fowler.
