Geoffrey Blainey's historical account of the mining activity on the west coast of Tasmania, The Peaks of Lyell' documents the changes over 130 years of activity in the region. Commissioned by the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company, emphasis is placed upon the development of the Mount Lyell Mine in Queenstown._x000D_
Chapter 19 Widening Horizons' details the review the Mount Lyell Company undertook in 1904/05 to ensure the future of the operation, following the pessimistic outlook regarding diminishing reserves and poor grade ore. The analogies documented between the Mount Lyell Company at that time, and Gold Mines of Australia 90 years on are remarkable, with both companies demonstrating a commitment to the Mount Lyell area through active exploration, the proactive search for alternative technology and the recognition of the valuable human resource._x000D_
As Blainey writes (Blainey, 1993), with its expanding chemical works, its huge Tasmanian mines, its railways and smelter, its coke works and its mine crusade, Mount Lyell was probably one of the nation's five great industrial companies in 1906 or 1907. This brief phase of industrial and mining expansion had its seed in the threat of extinction . . .' After a number of reprieves, the Mount Lyell mine did stop production in 1994, but that only provided an impetus for a review and rebirth.