When chemical fertilizers did not yet exist, the Cloup d'Aural phosphate mines attracted men for 20 years. They traveled there to extract the phosphate hidden in clay pockets, using rudimentary tools like shovels, buckets, and winches. This highly prized ore was then sent in particular to England to use in the Industrial Revolution. The women and children were busy sorting the clay to extract the phosphorite that the men collected from the bottom of the phosphate pit.