Premier was a large gold mining camp in British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 some 18 miles from Stewart

Stewart, British Columbia

Stewart is a small town, incorporated as a district municipality at the head of the Portland Canal in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. In 2006, its population was about 496.-History:...

. It ran from the years 1918 to 1953 and was a large employer in the area. Huge bunkhouses, generators, concentrators, machine and cook houses sat on the hillside. A road provided access to the area, snowfall pending. Horses and cat tractors were used.

Strangely Premier was closer to Hyder

Hyder, Alaska

Hyder is a census-designated place in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 97. Hyder has achieved fame as a point in Alaska accessible to automobile and motorbike travelers in Canada who want to say that they have been to Alaska...

, Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

, USA some 14 miles away, but the mine was in Canadian territory. The international aspects of the operation provided some interesting details on men's entertainment. Liquor was legal in Canada, while bawdy houses were not.
Hyder did a lively business in providing entertainment.

The mine was reopened as an open pit in 1987 by Westmin Resources. The Granduc copper mine is nearby; and there are other properties--BC Silver, Newmont, and Skyhawk.

See also

• Alaska Panhandle
  Alaska Panhandle
  Southeast Alaska, sometimes referred to as the Alaska Panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, which lies west of the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The majority of Southeast Alaska's area is part of the Tongass National Forest, the United...
  
  
• Eskay Creek
  Eskay Creek
  This is a rich gold mining area in the Unuk and Iskut River region on north coastal mountains of British Columbia. Remote and rugged, the area hasa service road from the Stewart-Cassiar Highway at Bell 2 Services....
  
  
• Granduc, British Columbia
• Salmon Glacier
  Salmon Glacier
  The Salmon Glacier is a glacier located ~ north of Stewart, British Columbia, and Hyder, Alaska, just on the Canadian side of the border. The glacier, one of hundreds in the Boundary Ranges, is notable for its major potential as a natural hazard...
  
  
• Stikine River
  Stikine River
  The Stikine River is a river, historically also the Stickeen River, approximately 610 km long, in northwestern British Columbia in Canada and southeastern Alaska in the United States...
  
  
• Unuk River
  Unuk River
  The Unuk River is a river in the U.S. state of Alaska and the Canadian province of British Columbia. It flows from the Coast Mountains southwest to Behm Canal, northeast of Ketchikan, Alaska....