Magino Village

The Magino Mine plans to develop an old underground gold mine located approximately 14 kilometers southeast of the town of Dubreuilville.

Production is expected to begin in early 2023 and the mine is expected to provide direct employment to approximately 300 people over an estimated 17-year mine life.

In addition to undertaking the dormitory project on the former sawmill site, businessman Patrice Dubreuil, who is always thinking outside the box, has added modular units to the exterior of his hotel, the Relais Magpie. This expansion provides 30 additional rooms.

In the 1960s, many entrepreneurs admired Dubreuilville, not only for its exemplary sawmill organization, but also for its community infrastructure.

In moving their operations and village from Magpie, the Dubreuil brothers sought to establish a larger village with better amenities to ensure the comfort of its residents. Eighteen new modern family homes were immediately built along the main street  followed by a school, a service station, a dormitory and a kitchen for the single employees.

At that time, the village consisted only of the upper part of what exists today. While the first houses and the service station still stand, the rest of the town that is now Dubreuilville was cleared and built later as the lumber company grew and employed more workers.

Despite its remote and isolated location, the residents of Dubreuiville had access to running potable water, indoor plumbing, a common septic tank and hot water.

The brothers used past experiences at Magpie to ensure the well-being and safety of residents. For example, they did not opt for kerosene heating, as it had already caused household fires in Magpie.

Even before the arrival of electricity in Dubreuilville in 1963, homes and some buildings were heated with excess steam generated by the sawmill boilers. It was carried by pipes from house to house. These pipes were accompanied by a water pipe and each second house was equipped with a fire hose that could reach the neighboring house.

It is thanks to the ingenuity of the brothers that this small village had modern features. It was a luxury compared to the basic facilities of most lumber camps of the time.

The brothers insisted on using every bit of wood to avoid waste, using the waste to heat their buildings and producing wood chips to generate extra income.

It takes a lot of creativity to run a successful business in a remote environment with limited resources. Fortunately, the Dubreuil brothers were innovators and not only succeeded, but thrived, becoming true leaders in the forestry industry.

They also took a forward-thinking approach to designing the village by using the steam generated by the sawmill's boilers to heat the homes.

In 1958 Augustin created the Sputnik. This stroke of genius revolutionized the sawmill industry by allowing a single operator to bring whole logs into the mill.

The brothers worked extremely efficiently. When they didn't have the machines or tools they needed, they visualized and built them. The most famous example is Augustine's invention of the Sputnik in 1958. It was the first time in North America that entire trees could be maneuvered by a single operator.

Several countries, such as the United States and even Sweden, have since adopted this technology. Because of the success of this innovation, the Dubreuil brothers were inducted into the Lumber Hall of fame for the positive impact they have had on modern logging approaches.

A view of Magino Village, including the bunkhouses that were set up as the main camp for workers at the Magino mine.