The quest for minerals began when humans first realized that stones could be fashioned into tools and that tools made life much easier. Today, entire industries have been created around minerals and whole sectors of the economy depend entirely on the wealth produced by the activities both directly and indirectly related to minerals.

In the Montreal area, two locations have earned a world reputation, either because of the abundance of minerals or because of the rare minerals found there. These are the Poudrette and the Demix quarries in Mont St. Hilaire and the Francon quarry in St. Michel. The minerals found at these locations are featured on this site.