Kirkland Lake, Earlton and Swastika – A Giant Bison and Gold Boom Town

July 10, 2023 by admin

In this post, we will be exploring a small sub-section of north-eastern Ontario, known for its mining boom – specifically gold. Although the region has suffered a severe demographic and economic decline there is still plenty to see here, if you can make the trip up. If you do drive to Kirkland Lake would recommend doing so in conjunction with a some of the towns near Lake Temiscaming to the south. Not only do they have a similar mining history to Kirland but they will add some great natural scenery to add your trip. These include the silver boom town of Cobalt, the cottagers retreat of Haileybury and the urban center of New Liskeard. Alternatively you can explore the Quebec towns of Rouyen-Noranda and Val D’Or.

Earlton and the Giant Bison
Swastika
Kirkland Lake

Earlton and the Giant Bison

While driving north from Lake Temiscaming / New Liskeard towards Kirkland Lake lake, I came across one of the strangest and most wonderful statues erected in the province (for some reason Ontario had plenty of statues of giant animals!).

The statue dates from 1984 and was commissioned by Bisons du Nord, a local bison ranch. I have never associated the province of Ontario with the Bison production like I had with Western Canada but apparently it is a popular product with the people of the province.

Swastika

This town name with a rather awkward name has a storied history. Lets start with the name, it is derived from the Swastika Gold Mine staked in the autumn of 1907. During World War II an overly intrusive provincial government decided that Swastika was not an appropriate name for such a place. They removed the Swastika sign and replaced it with a sign renaming the town “Winston.” Now I like Winston but the residents were quite infuriated and understandably so! The residents removed the new sign and replaced it with a Swastika sign with an added caveat written below – “To hell with Hitler, we came up with our name first. And yes I did just drop by for the name (and for some research on short story I was writing)!

Swastikas was formed by a twin event the expansion of the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway (Now Ontario Northland), and the staking of the first mine in 1907. The railway brought prospectors to the north and Swastika expanded quickly. By 1911 it had a hotel and a population of 450. There are only a few attractions in town. One of these is Fireman’s park, a pretty riverside park with a heritage plaque detailing the towns railway history.

In 2021, the Ontario Northland Railway’s station was demolished. It was one of the few memorable buildings in town and a large part of a short novella that I wrote. Unfortunately I had to borrow a picture from Wikipedia since I arrived only a few months after its demolition. This was a fine example of a 20th century railroad station in northern Ontario.

ONR Swastika station view from west of tracks at platform level

There is little left of importance in Swastika. Most of the businesses are boarded up although a few pretty churches remain, including the blue church near the Swastika Laboratories.

Kirkland Lake

One of the gold mining capitals of the world, Kirkland was once a vibrant hub of Northern Ontario with a busy main street, packed theaters and busy restaurants. In fact the most visible symbol of New Kirkland, The Kirkland Lake Miners’ Memorial, pays homage to the men that made this town what it was and those who lost their lives forging a new north. This memorial can be found on on the western approach of the town and is one of the better pieces of modern art that can be found in Canada. In the parking lot next door you will find Heritage North, a conference center containing a Hockey Museum. The rough and tumble miners of Kirkland made for excellent hockey players and the town played an early role in Canadian Hockey along with Lumber towns like Renfrew. For its contributions to the sport Foster Hewitt called Kirkland “the town that made the NHL.”.

The Kirkland gold rush started at a similar time to the Swastika one, when a Tom Price came across a boulder containing gold during 1906 visit. Like the former it was also served by the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway. The named of the town comes from a nearby lake that no longer exists turned into mine tailings. Much of the town’s history can be found at the Museum of Northern History at the Sir Harry Oakes Chateau, not far from the memorial. This old home belonged to Sir Harry Oakes, one of the many mining barons who moved to the town at the start of the 20th century. Arriving in town in 1911 he quickly established claims and merged his holdings, or acquired competitors to become one of the towns leading luminaries. His Lake Shore Mine was once “the most productive in the Western Hemisphere”, and was the second-largest gold mine in the Americas. A towering figure he moved to the Bahamas, became a British peer and owned much of the the islands and his investments spurred the colony’s growth. By the 1940’s he was the colonies most powerful man, a member of the assemble, a philanthropist and the owner of one third of New Providence. The Canadian Mining Hall of Fame member is just as remembered for his grisly murder where a hand pik was used to disguise the actual cause of death which was a stabbing by Ice Pick. His death is still one of the worlds greatest cold cases!

In behind the museum you will find your typical mine tailings.

When you do make it in to town you will find evidence of Kirkland’s industrial boom. At its peak in the 1930’s the town had upwards of twenty-six thousand residents by the 1970’s it had fallen to over thirteen thousand and it now sit at under eight-thousand. Although you will find some businesses, many buildings such as the La Salle theater have long been boarded up.

Although the region has been mined almost dry, occasional exploration still happens as some of the old mine sites to clear out missed pockets of gold. Yet there is less and less to be found and the city has tried to diversify with different types of minerals. Among the rather impressive buildings funded by the boom years is the old municipal office building.

As well as a few churches, although they have seen better days, that’s for sure.

In town you will also find a park dedicated to the Wright-Hargreaves mine. Established in 1911 after the discovery of gold in what would become the Kirkland Lake camp, it was the deepest mine in the camp area. The mine was open from regular production between 1921 and 1964 and would be the second most productive in Kirkland. It holds the distinction of being the deepest mine in Canada and the second deepest in North America. In the park you will find the gates to the mine.

Perhaps the most interesting attraction in town is the Toburn Gold Mine, Kirkland’s first operating gold mine. It has now been turned into an open air museum!

In the parking you will find a series of rocks on display and an explanation of their composition.

When you make it out onto the main lawn you will find a series of objects used in the mines and an explanation to their industrial application. These includes sinking buckets, fire hose wagons, little motor railways with buckets and drills.