To the south lies the Kunwarara Magnesite mine, which works one of the world's largest supplies of the mineral.
Known for their extensive trade networks, the Habematolel Pomo traded magnesite and obsidian with the Coast Miwoks for a variety of shells.
In 1881 the German merchant Friedrich Albert Carl Spaeter (1835–1909) from Koblenz established magnesite works in Veitsch, Styria; followed by the Austro–American Magnesite Company at Radenthein, Carinthia in 1908 and Dolomite Franchi at Marone, Italy in 1919.