The Bluebell Mine was a lead, zinc, and silver mine that operated in Riondel on Kootenay Lake from around 1820 to 1972.
The Francophone presence materializes in 1905, when the Canadian Metal Company Ltd., held by French capital, purchased the Bluebell mine through the Bank of Montreal. The growth of the mine and its associated population led to the establishment of a post office, called Riondel, in honour of the French president of the Canadian Metal Co., Count Édouard Riondel.
This place is valued for its associations with Francophone settlers who were part of its early development and is evidenced in family names of both newcomers and present day residents including Gendron, Fontaine, Lajeunesse, Laplante, Létourneau, Huchet, Talbot, Tournier, Sainte-Marie, Sicotte, Leclair, Perrin, St-Germain, Paquette, Ruel, Tremblay, Bédard, and Falardeau.