Archaeological excavation in eastern Serbia, where the Bor Mine is located, confirmed that even the Romans had been involved in mining in this area. However, at the time, only gold was sought for. The history of the mine tells us that speedy development of the area began precisely in the 20th century, with a purely accidental discovery of copper ore in 1902, after official exploration had been terminated. This area underwent intense urbanisation, which has transformed its rural environment into a highly-industrialized mining basin, changing not only the natural aspects of the area but also the occupational structure of its inhabitants.
After the ore had been discovered, Đorđe Vajfert (1857-1937), an industrialist from Pančevo, who invested in the exploration of the area, sought the help of foreign capital in order to be able to initiate exploitation. He managed to obtain support for this endeavour in France. After having signed a contract with the Mirabo Bank in Paris, the French Society of the Bor Mines, the Concession St. George (La Compagnie Francaise des Mines de Bor, Concession St. George) was formed on 30 September 1903. Copper exploitation progressed rapidly. Therefore, as early as 1904, around 80 miners worked there and, during that year, 5.500 tons of copper ore were excavated, resulting in 774 tons of pure copper. In the first five years, the French company capital was increased from the initial 5.5 to 7 million French franks in gold.
For the most part, the work was executed manually. Copper was transferred to the nearest train station in Vražogrnci by ox-carts until 1911 when the Bor-Metovnica transport rail was built. The expansion of the mining-related facilities, particularly the smelter and the flotation system, brought about environmental pollution with sulphuric fumes created in the ore-melting process.
This had an indirect influence on the increase in the price of food products in the area and the disproval of the local population involved in agriculture. Due to a great economic crisis in the early 1930s, the labour cost in the Bor Mine was drastically decreased. However, there was a recovery quite soon, in 1933, initiating the mine golden age, that would last until 1940.
After the end of the Second World War, the period of socialism was marked with great working-class enthusiasm at the Bor Mine. As early as 1945, the Bor Mines and Smelters public company was founded by a Yugoslav Government decision. Since the equipment was outdated and there were insufficient funds for modernization, digging was performed manually, using drills. Often, the workers used two drills, surpassing the pre-war performance first by 90, and then by up to 160 per cent. The number of voluntary extra hours was up to 96.000 during those years, which is unbelievable from the modern market economy perspective. Nevertheless, this has brought about the recovery of the mine and the foundation of the Bor Mining and Smelting Combine in 1961, which marked the beginning of the new workers’ self-management era. Innovations included technological modernization, continuous employee training, the participation of everyone in decision-making processes and the presence of women in the work processes.
Bor continued growing along with its industry so, in 1947, it was given the status of a city, with more than 12 thousand inhabitants, many of which worked at the mine. The number of the inhabitants quickly increased and new apartments were built to accommodate the workers. Therefore, by the mid-20th century, Bor was inhabited by no less than nineteen different nations who spoke seven different languages due to an intense influx of workers from all over Yugoslavia. New schools were built and, in the spirit of self-management, courses for workers were held all the time, ensuring the continuous education of workers, which brought miners into the library.
Initially, the share of copper in the copper ore was 6 to 25 per cent. As the decades of exploitation went by, by the end of the 20th century, the share decreased to 3 per cent. During that time, the landscape of Bor and the surrounding area has been completely changed. The urban core, formed around the mining colony, has grown into a proper city, whose landmarks are chimneys and mining horizons of burnt land that serve as a warning of the high price of copper exploitation resulting in permanent environmental pollution of the area.
