John Paris Bickell

1884--1951

Brokerage f irm-- financier-- became millionaire by 30--
and in 1919-- invested in McIntyre-Porcupine,
Ontario's first gold and major producer.

WWII-- Worked with Airplane supply board getting planes
made for British govt. Worked for Victory aircraft in Canada
on more planes for RCAF.

Philanthropists--gave lots of money, after he died-- had
endowment--which has given massive amounts to Toronto Sick Kids hospital.
Also scholarships for mining endevors.

Born in Molesworth, Ontario (?)
Went to Yukon Goldfields as a young man.
Did buisness in Toronto in early 1900s. Helped finance silver mines in Temiskaming. (?)
Then Timmins region.
Invested early in the McIntyre mine.
Helped make it a rich place.
Also some gold in Quebec; and Silver near Gowganda.



helped make Maple Leaf Gardens! (Toronto)

Robert William Boyle

1920--Alive
Geochemsit. worked on methods. helped find places.

worked for prospecting syndicate--
then WWII.
Geology at London College; then Queen's
Then u of T;

Mapped/mine sites/ Yellowknife Gold Camp.
Interested in chemistry of gold deposits.

More school-- phd 1953

1952-- joined the GSC; returned to Yellowknife; working on his Gold theories.
1953-- Went to Keno Hill in the yukon--and geochemistry got more exciting.
Worked there on Keno Hill--helped revive the camp through science!

1955- Asked GSC to set up geochemistry lab for prospecting.
Began mapping in Maritimes for heavy metals.
Later did some work at Cobalt Silver too.

Frederick M. Connell

1883--1980

Got Inco medal in 1973:
"In recognition of the leading part he has played as a mine-finder and mine-maker, placing his name in the foremost rank of those whose names and accomplishments will always be associated with laying broad and firm foundations to one of Canada's greatest industries."

Worked on a number of famous mines. Let me tell you about them.
And then...

Spencerville Ontario--1906-- graduate from Queen's in Mining Eng.
Worked in Silver exploration in Cobalt;
Porcupine and Kirkland Lake gold rushes.

1920--1929; opened a number of mines Waite Amulet Mines; Central Patricia Gold Mines.

1938 formed the Conwest Exploration group; became all of Connell Mining.
Connell's Conwest.

1945-- teamed with Frobisher-- to make Keno Hill Mining to deal with Silver in the Yukon.
United Keno became largest single producer of silver in Canada.

1950-- took over claim Northern Bc.
Became an asbestos mine.

Oh yeah, and the OBE.

Ernest J. Darragh

Another Cobalt discoverer.
He was in the bush.
James H. McKinley and Ernest J. Darragh were contractors providing lumber for a railway being pushed north through the thick Ontario bush. On August 7. 1903 the two partners were walking the right of way scouting for trees suitable for railway ties....
etc;.

Tom Hebert

Another of the Cobalt discoverers.
He found the big one:
"Tom Hebert, a French-Canadian working on the railroad, prevailed on the geologist to examine a vein Hebert had found in the face of a cliff Miller reported:..."silver was lying in profusion at the base of the cliff." Hebert's discovery became the richest silver mine in the Cobalt camp and one of the most productive in the world. Affectionately labeled as "Big Nip," this mine yielded more than 91 million ounces of silver over 40 years of production."

ALAN KULAN

1921--1977.

Prospector/Entrepreneur. big fidns were lead-zinc-silver in the Yukon--the Faro deposit.
He's a big Yukon booster too.

Born in Toronto--went around Manitoba-- went to WWII. Drove tanks.
"Vowed he'd never work for others again" Good for him. So he went prospecting in Yukon.

1953. Found a good find at Ross River. Learned a lot about prospecting. Self-taught I think.
Built Ross River as an office HQ. Aboriginal people hired them/taught them prospecting.

1964. helped form Dynasty Exploration for Vangorda area.
Not easy. Made partnership.
Then found Faro Deposit.

Kept running companies etc;

1970-- Foudn Lazulite. Great mineral species.
great specimens and species.

Gilbert A. LaBine

1890--1977 "Mr. Uranium."
Anecdote here, but it's not a good one...
1930: Discovered the pitchblende at Great Bear Lake, NWT
(this is a location we're likely going to use.)
There-- yielded Uranium and Radium.

Self-taught. Found Eldorado Uranium at Great Bear.

1890. Born in Pembroke--began in the silver fields of Cobalt--
and then did some staking at Porcupine and Kirkland Lake.
Prospected with Hollinger, and Harry Oakes.

Went to Manitoba-- no luck for gold there.
He and brother formed company--Eldorado Gold Mines. again no luck.
But gave funds to explore Great Bear Lake and the Uranium.

Well, this is as good as it gets. It's THAT uranium. The uh, one with
uh, THAT history. Ahem.
"The Eldorado radium/uranium ore was so rich that it broke a stranglehold on radium then held by Belgium. But with a saturated market and stockpiles building, production at Eldorado was suspended until the advent of World War II and the sudden urgent demand for uranium - uranium used to produce the first atomic bomb, the bomb that at Nagasaki and Hiroshima ended the most devastating war in history."

Govt. took over Eldorado.

1934-- also did some gold in Manitoba--and that worked ok.
Gunnar Gold. then post War-- found large Uranium in Saskatchewan.

Called "Mr. Uranium."
FOR MORE Check this out on Eldorado.

James McKinley and the Cobalt Discoverers

Mad Anecdote here: They are the Cobalt Discoverers.
James H. McKinley -- Ernest J. Darragh -- Alfred "Fred" LaRose – Tom Hebert

A bonanza strike. Celebrated 100th anniversary in 2003.
Cobalt called "The Most Historic Town in Ontario"
We HAVE to use Cobalt as one of the sites.
And think about the pictures.

Silver riches: As a source of silver riches, the Cobalt area led the world in yielding a phenomenal 460 million ounces. That is about US$2 billion worth of silver at today's prices. In Cobalt's peak year, 1911, 34 mines produced some 30 million ounces.

Great descriptions here that we can put in the story. Cobalt lead to not just mines--
but helped develop the entire Canadian mining industry in both skills and money
to fund further development.

Threw a hammer? What's the real story there?
August 7--1903 -- they were in the bush. James and Ernest. Getting lumber
for a railway. Found some unusual pink stained rocks: And then had them checked out
in Montreal and Ottawa: Different results -- Montreal said silver!

In September 1903-- Fred La Rose was sharpening steel drills for railway builders.
had worked in a quebec mine. Also noticed pink rocks.

Willett G Miller: he's the ontario provincial geologist--- famous guy--
followed up (Apparently for all of Canada) that this guy followed up with a visit.
Lead to 4 veins being found.

And finally
Tom Herbert: another railroad worker-- pushed Miller to look at a vein he found.
Became the biggest mine in the camp. "Big Nip!" ran for 40 years...

W. AUSTIN MCVEIGH

1882-1975

Born near Ottawa in Quebec. Loved the outdoors.
Did early prospecting before WWI in Cobalt and Kirkland Lake for silve rand gold.
"learned basics of geology." Self-taught?

1926--went to Red Lake after hearing of gold strike there.
1936-- found a good strike; did good prospecting.
Made a great gold mine.

1938 went to Manitoba for the Sherritt Gordon Mines.

1941 prospecting in Lynn Lake (MB) found a good copper/nickel deposit--bu tit was too far.
1943 McVeigh returns--Magnetometer! uses it to find more.
Lynn Lake mine turned out to be a super-rich find. Made Sherritt cash.

Willet Green Miller

1866-1925. Looks VERY Deadwood.
In the fall of 1926, a memorial tablet was unveiled at Cobalt, dedicated to Willet Green Miller, "provincial geologist of Ontario, who gave to Cobalt its name and place among the great mining camps of the world; who read the secret of the rocks and opened the portal for the outpouring of their wonderful riches".

Highly regarded Geologist. Knew much of Canada's mineral potential. Portrait of him is in Queen's Park.
Sudbury has a facility named after him.

1890: U of T. Natural Science. Grad work at Harvard, Chicago, etc;.

Worked for GSC. mapped out Ontario.

1902: the first provincial geologist for Ontario.
First to recognize importance of Cobalt discoveries--before precious metals mined in N. Ontario.
Did investigation of the region--from nickel--to cobalt-- and found the Silver.
Helped shape the camp in Cobalt:
1915 Got the Gold Medal of Institute of Mining and Metallurgy in London for this.

Science method: how to identify diamonds, emeralds,corundum , emery: by X-Rays.
Corundum: This lead to production of it in Eastern Ontario. (1906 --- big deal)

authority. on Precambrian geology.

Alex Mosher

1900--1993.
A prospector.
One of the founders of PDAC.

From long line of miners--born at Eureka Gold Mine, Wine Harbour NS.
"inherited interest in mines"
born in Maritimes--grew up in Cobalt. But "took his canoe to more remote areas"

1927, with his brother Murdock, he staked Central Patricia gold mines.

In 1930 prospected in Matachewan area and played an important role in staking the Ashley Gold Mines. He and his brother Murdock were also in the vanguard of the Little Long Lac staking rush in 1931.

1938. Did prospecting in Yellowknife.

1940's. He was part of a group staking a radioactive vein in 1947 at Otter Rapids on the Abitibi River. It was a history-making event, as this find was the first of its kind outside the Northwest Territories.

A magnetic deposit he staked later at Bruce Lake became the Griffith Mine that yielded annually 1.5 million tons of iron ore pellets for many years.

Chimo Gold Mines was another Mosher find in Vauquehn Township of Quebec. Under his direction gold was produced here from 1966 to 1968.

Paul Penna

1922--1996
mine maker. executive.
AgnicoEagle. looking for gold in Canada.
Born in Toronto.
Started as a broker/financier.
1962--took over Agnico, a Cobalt area Silver mine.
turned it around and made it great.

then switched to gold in Quebec at Dumagami.
Did a big mine there called LaRonde. Ore and Copper.
dug up lots of gold.

Don't learn much about this guy, just his digging programs.
Finally did stuff
in Kirkland Lake / Larder Lake area.

Karl Springer

1899--1991
this is another long lived guy, wow, like 92? that's ahead by a century.
Mine-finder. Prospector.
pioneer work with helicopter and aviation in mine finding.
Worked on many mining ventures.
Newfoundland zinc.
One of the earliest founders/presidents of PDAC. 1930s.
Began finding mines in Quebec in 20s.--
then founded Springer Sturgeon Gold Mines.
became Barymin ltd. Discovered a Barite mine (what's Barite)?
Some more gold. management. money guy.
BC companies in the 40s.
Found Silver. Copper. Did work with Helicopters.
Pushed the value of aircraft. -- Became a huge airline Pacific Western (and was bought up later)
Discovered huge Mattagami Lake Mines in NW quebec (multiorebody)
*Canada Tungsten Mining company--Tungsten in NWT late 50s
* Zinc with Newfoundland Zinc from late 60s.

Robert Crooks Stanley

1876-1951.
He was a big nickel guy for Inco.
Worked it in Sudbury with 8 mines there; and Thompson Manitoba to. Lots of stuff ther.e
He looks like he's a guy having his picture taken.
Inco used to be American right?

Began with Orford Copper-- a prequel to Inco in 1910. No way.
Became VP of International Nickel.

Anecdote: To the Inco story is that after WWI nickel market collapsed--
And under Stanley's direction the company started trying to figure it out.
Found many places to use Nickel. That's exciting--shows how markets, mining,
historical forces work together. (Something here- but needs "mined")

Did early reports on Cobalt area in 1904 too. On Silver.
And Did some early reports that lead to porcupine area/ dome mine/ timmins

But why do they need to mention he was a fisherman?
We know nothing about this man except that he liked Salmon. Huh.

Arthur W. Stollery

1914-1994
Found 2 great orebodies--lead to Denison and Camflo mines.
Staked out property in Elliot lake in the 50's-- found massive Uranium orebody.
(That's a strategic mineral!)
Big discovery. "intuition--geology"
British Columbia--worked in a mine after the war.
Did a lot on the geology of the area.
Denison mines there: 1953-- huge uranium mine there.
Denison was a huge Uranium company.
Then did a bunch of other stuf:
Dneison:
Consolidated Morrison: Silver.
Saskatchewan: Potash: Noranda
Camflo.
1960 Stollery-- went to James Bay and found Columbium.

Noah Timmins

1867--1936
Wow--he's a big deal here. Seriously. He's the mining MAN.

One of the founders of the Cobalt mine (LaRose, Silver)
and Hollinger gold mine in Timmins.

Tonnes of stories about this guy.

Noah and Henry. Born in Mattawa Ontario.
Prospectors.
Timmins first bought the share in the Cobalt mine. that was the big deal.
Then they both moved away to Montreal and married a pair of sisters. Whoa.
One of their nephews told them about a gold discovery in Porcupine by Benny Hollinger.

Anecdotes here.
They set out for Porcupine--and invested in the mine--and then they incorporated with it.
Became the Hollinger mine in 1910 60 years life. Humungous. The largest single Gold mine in Canadian history.

Timmins was born from the community there.
Was able to be organized there.

1924--gave money for Noranda in Quebec.
And mother mines across country (quebec, yellowknife, NWT, manitoba)

Harold Madison Wright

1908-1997
Western Mining. Did a lot in the Yukon. Nearly 50 years of mining.


Geologist. Metallurgist. Then he went to be a field engineer. Engineer. that supplied the Northwest.
Wright Engineers-- founded in 1947, supplied mining equipment.

Big projects:
Bethlehem Copper mine -- 1962. Ashcroft Bc.

In 1951. Formed Western Mines--for silver. Bought a whole lot of properties in BC.
Buttle Lake, Vancouver Island.

1980-- Westmin resources.

So he's an engineer. businessman. Geologist. financier guy. Oh yeah, and an athlete. Olympian!