Asbestos, Québec city limit sign

Description

In 1884, a post office was established near to a mine in southern Québec, and was named after what the mine produced—asbestos. The name was given by English-speaking administrators, despite the fact that the area’s residents were French speakers who called the mineral amiante. Over time, the mine at Asbestos became one of the world’s largest. At the time, asbestos was used in a wide range of products due to its excellent fire resistance. It was such a critical material that a 1949 miners’ strike in Asbestos was considered a turning point in Québec’s history. At one point, asbestos was worth more than the equivalent weight in gold.

However, as early as 1898, the mineral was known to cause health problems, and eventually was discovered to cause mesothelioma, a particularly deadly cancer. However, the mining company lied to its employees about the dangers, leading the townsfolk to believe that the risks were overblown. Nevertheless, those risks led demand for asbestos to plummet. The company declared bankruptcy in 1983, with the mine changing hands, being subsidized by the provincial and Canadian governments, and finally closing altogether in 2012. Those who lived in Asbestos never really associated the name of their town with what they called amiante. But they wanted to attract new businesses to replace the jobs lost when the mine closed, and the name made that difficult. So, in 2020, the town voted to change its name to Val-des-Sources, or Valley of the Springs.

Our Asbestos sign is an exact replica of the signs that once stood along provincial routes 249 and 255 as they entered the town. It is made according to the official 2012 Transports Québec I-150-4 specification. Every detail of the sign, fonts and layout included, is just like one that would have been seen before the name change.

Our Asbestos sign is printed on heavy 14-gauge steel. It has a high-gloss, durable coating that allows it to be installed outdoors, even in snowy Québec. It is non-retroreflective, making it an excellent indoor display piece as well. We’ve included pre-drilled mounting holes to make installation convenient. It’s available in the following sizes:

• 21 in. × 7 in.
• 30 in. × 10 in.
• 45 in. × 15 in.
• 81 in. × 27 in. (For easier shipping and installation, this version is split across two panels)

We can make this sign in any size you choose, including metric sizes! And we can make a sign like this for any city in Québec, or the equivalent from anywhere else in the world. Don’t see a sign for your favorite city on our website? Just contact us to place a custom order!