[4] As stated in the United Mine Workers' Journal of 1937, "Nowhere on the American continent, is there a strife which combines the elements of greed, harshness, cold, suffering, and want, as exists [in Minto].

The need of transporting coal brought the railway to Minto, and was to make the area "the most prosperous place in Canada."

During the early years of the Great Depression, the New Brunswick Power Corporation built the province's first thermal generating station south of the village on the shores of Grand Lake.

On April 19, 2012 the Grand Lake Generating Station was demolished,[15] and by this time all coal mining in Minto had ended.

During the Second World War, the largest internment camp in eastern Canada was located in the hamlet of Ripples, 10 km west of the village of Minto.

Originally it was home to German and Austrian Jews, both orthodox and non-observant, as well as to other anti-fascist refugees,[16] all of whom had fled the Nazis to England.

[17] Some youths later became notable, including theologian Gregory Baum, chemist Ernest Eliel and physicist Walter Kohn.

A walking trail leads into the forest where a few ruins of the camp and posted signs describing the area may be found.

Once a year, mountain bike racers[29] descend on the town of Minto for a race[30] known as 'The Coal Miner's Lung'.

Both schools offer extracurricular activities including sports clubs, destination conservation, peer helpers and student government.

[35] Marjorie Taylor Morell (1918-2004), author of Of Mines and Men; 1995 recipient of United Nations Community Service Award