Kirkland Lake, Ontario

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Town of Kirkland Lake
other_name =
native_name =
nickname = The Mile of Gold, Hub of the North, The Right Environment, Hockeytown
settlement_type = Town
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imagesize = 220px
image_caption = (Downtown) Government Road facing East


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = Canada
subdivision_type1 = Province
subdivision_name1 = Ontario
subdivision_type2 = District
subdivision_name2 = Timiskaming District, Ontario
subdivision_type3 =
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government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Bill Enouy
leader_title1 = Governing Body
leader_name1 = Kirkland Lake Town Council
leader_title2 = MPs
leader_name2 = Charlie Angus (NDP)
leader_title3 = MPPs
leader_name3 = David Ramsay (OLIB)
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established_title = Established
established_date = 1919 (Township of Teck)
established_title2 = Incorporated (Town)
established_date2 = 1972
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area_total_km2 = 262.24
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population_as_of = 2006
population_footnotes = Statistics Canada [ [http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/profiles/community/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=3554068&Geo2=PR&Code2=35&Data=Count&SearchText=kirkland%20lake&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=35&B1=All&Custom= Statistics Canada 2006 census data] retrieved 2007-10-28]
population_note =
population_total = 8248
population_density_km2 = 31.45
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timezone = EST
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
latd= 48|latm= 09|lats= 00|latNS=N
longd= 80|longm= 02|longs= 00|longEW=W
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 243
elevation_ft =
postal_code_type = Postal Code FSA
postal_code = P2N
area_code = 705
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website = http://www.town.kirklandlake.on.ca/
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Kirkland Lake is a town and municipality located in Timiskaming District in northeastern Ontario, Canada. The 2006 population, according to Statistics Canada, was 8,248.

The community name was based on a nearby lake which in turn was named after Winnifred Kirkland, a secretary of the Ontario Department of Mines in Toronto. The lake was named by surveyor Louis Rorke in 1907. Miss Kirkland never visited the town and the lake that bore her name no longer exists because of mine tailings. The community comprises Kirkland Lake, as well as Swastika, Chaput Hughes and Harvey Kirkland.

KL was built on gold, but it is equally as well known for producing world-famous hockey players. Indeed, legendary hockey broadcaster Foster Hewitt called Kirkland Lake "the town that made the NHL famous", likely because in the early days of the NHL, it was not uncommon to find an NHLer from the town. The town celebrates this tradition at the Hockey Heritage North museum.

History

A lost prospector, a rifle shot and a misplaced step—these were the elements that led to the founding of Kirkland Lake, and signalled the opening of one of the most exciting chapters in Canadian mining history.

William Wright and Ed Hargreaves were prospecting in the area in 1911. Hargreaves became lost while hunting for rabbits and fired a shot to attract the attention of Wright. While scrambling through the bush, Wright stumbled across a quartz outcrop with clear evidence of gold – lots of it. The next day, Wright and Hargreaves staked out their claims. Little did they know that they had just discovered the main ore-bearing fault of the Kirkland Lake gold camp. Later those claims became the nucleus of three great mines: the Sylvanite, Wright – Hargreaves, and Lakeshore. And with that staking, the Kirkland Lake gold rush was on.

The Kirkland Camp attracted some of the most colourful characters in Canadian mining history. Sandy McIntyre of Porcupine fame tramped the area, staking claims that resulted in the Teck-Hughes Mine. The Tough brothers snowshoed four miles in the middle of the night in –50’ to stake out the land that would become the Tough Oakes mine. J.B Tyrell, best known for discovering the dinosaurs in the Alberta badlands, made Kirkland Lake Gold Mines a success, while Robert Bryce, one of Canada’s leading mine engineers bucked conventional wisdom and the financiers of the day to bring the mighty Macassa mine into being.

But of all the characters in the camp, none surpassed Harry Oakes for sheer tenaciousness and strength of character. It was he that talked the Tough brothers into the midnight jaunt that would make them rich. And it was he that read the signs that others missed, staking his claims on the shores of Kirkland Lake. And from those claims came the Lakeshore mine, one of richest gold mines in the world. From that point on, Harry never looked back. Success followed success, until his mysterious murder in the Bahamas in 1943.

As prospectors gave way to production, civilization followed. The municipal council of the Township of Teck was sworn in 1919. The new council quickly set about bringing order to the unorganized township. Roads were built, pipes laid, and rules created to govern the rapidly growing population. And the people came. Some like Roza Brown and Charlie Chow will forever live in our memories and imagination, for they were the kind of people that added true colour to the community. But there were many others. In 1939, the population peaked at 24,200; 4,680 of which worked for the mines.

Mining remained the economic mainstay of the community until the latter half of the 20th century, when stagnant gold prices and rising production costs and the lack on new finds led to a gradual slowdown. The Toburn mine closed in 1953, followed by the Kirkland Minerals in 1960, Sylvanite in 1961, Lake Shore and Wright-Hargreaves in 1965, Teck-Hughes in 1968 and Macassa in 1999.

The Town went through a period of economic decline towards the end of the last century, with the closing of these original mines. That ended in 2001 when Foxpoint Resources (now Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. or KLG) bought five of the mining claims in the town and began intensive exploration work. KLG successfully resuscitated the local mining scene, finding new zones of mineralization that, combined with the steadily increasing price of gold, turned the town around. Tourism, forestry and professional services have all grown in importance as well. Today, Kirkland Lake is probably one of the most successful communities of its size in Northern Ontario.

Geography

Kirkland Lake is located at coord|48|09|00|N|80|02|00|W|type:city_region:CA-ON|display=inline,title at an altitude of convert|243 |m|ft|0 above sea level and has an area of convert|262.24|km2|sqmi|2|abbr=on. Kirkland Lake is nestled in the resource rich Precambrian Shield, the oldest geological formation on the planet. Nearby is the Arctic Watershed. Waters flowing south of this height of land (318 meters above sea level) flow into the Great Lakes and on to the Atlantic Ocean. North of this point, all waters flow into Hudson Bay and on to the Arctic Ocean.

If you were to fly over the district, you'd see a rolling wooded landscape dotted with lakes, wetlands, and rock outcroppings: topography typical of the northern boreal forest. Noticeable local landmarks include Mount Cheminis, rising 500 meters above sea level, and many small kettle lakes, scraped out of the rock during the last Ice Age and filled with crystal clear water.

Black spruce, jack pine, trembling aspen, white birch, white spruce, balsam poplar, and balsam fir are the dominant trees in the area. Moose, beavers, muskrats, snowshoe hares, as well as numerous predators roam this area, including martens, ermines, fishers, otters, black bears, wolves, and lynx. The many wetlands and lakes support a diversity of bird species, such as Great Blue Herons, ducks, geese, and of course that symbol of the north, the common loon. Ground and tree dwelling birds are also plentiful, including grouse, partridge, Tiffybirds robins, blue and gray jays and birds of prey like hawks.

Climate

Kirkland Lake enjoys four distinct seasons. Spring and autumn offer a mix of warm sunny days and crisp, cool nights. Summers are comfortably warm, with dry air and temperatures reaching into the mid 20 degree Celsius range (mid 70s' Fahrenheit). Winter temperatures may seem brisk, but high winds and high humidity are rare, allowing residents to take full advantage of outside recreational activities.

Demographics

Kirkland Lake, with a current population of 8,240, is the ninth largest community in Northern Ontario. Over the past twenty years, the population has declined by more than 30%, from 12,000 in 1986. This decline, reflecting the closing of the mines that were historically the largest employers in the town, has slowed in recent times. However, between the 2001 census and 2006 census, the population declined by 4.5%, the 24th highest decline in Canada.

While this is accurate, more current information indicates that the population has actually increased for the first time in decades. Using Statistics Canada Taxfiler data, the local population in 2004 was estimated at 7,580, a decline from the 2001 population of 8,616. The 2006 Census population actually shows an increase of 8.7% from 2004.

The increase in population has had a number of consequences. Housing sales have increased by over 25% since 2003. Unemployment has dropped to less than 6%. Wages have increased, with many of the new jobs being fairly well paid ones. For example, a labourer in a sawmill operation earns an average salary of $21.00 per hour, while a miner averages $24.00 per hour. Given the tight labour market, especially in the mining sector, actual wages may be significantly higher, especially once premiums and bonuses are added to the total amounts earned. Lastly, consumer confidence has increased. There has been a steady increase in the number of building permits issued over the last two years, and businesses dealing with consumer leisure or recreational items have reported increased sales.

Economy

The Town went through a period of economic decline towards the end of the last century, with the closing of the original mines. That ended in 2001 when Foxpoint Resources (now Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. or KLG) bought five of the mining claims in the town and began intensive exploration work. KLG successfully resuscitated the local mining scene, finding new zones of mineralization that, combined with the steadily increasing price of gold, turned the town around.Fact|date=January 2008 Today, Kirkland Lake is probably one of the most successful communities of its size in Northern Ontario. Some of the more recent developments include:

* Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. continues to expand its operations. Since December 2002, the company’s confirmed gold reserves have increased by 160% to 2,022,000 tons with an average grade of 0.46 ounces per ton containing a total of 927,000 ounces of gold. In 2003, the Company started a $21 million, 3 year exploration program targeted at adding an additional 15,000,000 tons of ore to reserves and resources. Currently, over 500 personnel are directly or indirectly employed at the mine site. Based on today’s resources, the mine has a 12-15 year life span. A recently announced $16 million expansion in its exploration activities is already paying dividends. The mine recently announced the discovery of the richest ore veins ever found in the history of the Kirkland Lake camp, a move which will significantly increase the mine’s life span.

*While the forestry industry has been hard hit across Canada, the impact on Kirkland Lake has been mitigated by the conversion of the existing Tembec Forest Products Group's Kenogami sawmill into a value-added centre for the manufacturing of finger-jointed lumber. The new centre, located on the outskirts of KL, opened in July 2006. It will employ between 70 and 92 workers. Under an innovative Public-Private partnership, the municipality is working with Rosko Forestry Operations to establish a specialty sawmill in the Archer Drive Industrial Park that will sell into the Canadian market.

* The local tourism industry has provided a much needed depth to the local economy. Star attractions include the Museum of Northern History at the Sir Harry Oakes Chateau, the stunningly beautiful Miners Memorial, and Hockey Heritage North (an 18,000 square foot interactive facility telling the story of hockey in the north). Upcoming attractions include a refurbishment of the historical Toburn Headframe. Event based tourism is also strong. Some of the most popular draws includea drag racing event in the summer and a national snow cross racing event in the winter.

* Prospects for an expansion of the Town’s white-collar workforce are excellent. Two new high schools as well as a long-term care facility, and a new medical centre promise to make the community more attractive to professionals in the fields of medicine and education. Veterans Affairs Canada is also growing its client service operations. The local office is now the primary service bureau for over 100,000 clients across central and eastern Canada.

These good news stories are supplemented by a number of developments occurring regionally that will have a positive impact because KL is the economic hub of the north Temiskaming District, and so the primary supplier of products, people and services to regional activities. For example:

* The steady increase in the price of gold has brought a number of other mining projects to the feasibility stage. Queenston Mining Inc. announced promising results at its Upper Beaver Properties. Northgate Minerals has poured over $20 million into exploration work and is moving ahead with mining operations at its Young-Davidson properties near Matachewan. According to the company, this site has the potential to produce 150,000 ounces of gold per year for a decade. In addition, more finds are coming online because of the Discover Abitibi mineral exploration program.

* St. Andrew Goldfields will commence production at the Holloway-Holt Gold Mine Complex near Matheson in the second quarter of 2007. The mine has a forecast production rate of 75,000-100,000 ounces of gold per annum for the next seven years, and will employ over 100 people.

* Tres-Or Resources Ltd. continues to return high quality results from its diamond exploration efforts southwest of Kirkland Lake. The richness of the finds, the large size of the host kimberlite pipes, plus expected low mine construction and operating costs in the area indicate a very positive future in this wholly new area of economic activity. Exploration continues. If more kimberlite structures are found, and the price of diamonds increases as expected, a mine could be in the making within 10 years.

Famous Kirkland Lakers

* Ralph Backstrom - hockey player
* Mary Bailey - former country singer, music manager
* Michael Barnes - former Principal of Queen Elizabeth and Central Schools, author regional interest books.
* Smiley Bates (1937-1997) - country musician
* Mario Bernardi - conductor, pianist
* Toller Cranston - figure skater, painter
* Dick Duff - hockey player
* Bill Durnan - goalie
* Bryan Gilbert - former professional indy wrestler
* Katherine Hannah -hockey and baseball player
* Michael Hogan, actor
* Ted Lindsay - hockey player
* Michael Mahonen - actor
* Peter Mallette - veteran CTV broadcaster, anchors CTV News on the weekends.
* Diane Marleau - politician
* Bob Murdoch - hockey player, coach
* Claude Noel - hockey player
* Sir Harry Oakes - mining millionaire
* Vic Phillips - CTV National News and Global News World Report anchor, author, and radio correspondent.
* Barclay Plager - hockey player, coach
* Bob Plager - hockey player
* Daren Puppa - hockey player
* Mickey Redmond - hockey player, sports broadcaster
* Alan Thicke - actor, composer

Education

Kirkland Lake has two secondary schools, each catering to a different language group: the École Catholique Jean Vanier, a French Catholic school; and the Kirkland Lake District Composite School, an English secondary school also featuring French immersion instruction (opened in 2006; from 1923 - 2006 students attended Kirkland Lake Collegiate and Vocational Institute, also known as KLCVI). Now there is a brand new secondary school called Kirkland Lake District Composite School (KLDCS) which was built near the local complex.

Elementary schools in Kirkland Lake include Central Public School (French immersion, public), Federal Public School (English, public), Sacred Heart School (French immersion and English, Catholic), St. Jerome School (French immersion and English, Catholic), and Ecole Assomption (French, Catholic).

There is only one junior high school for Kirkland Lake, named after King George, King George Junior High School (French immersion and English) is from grade 5 to grade 8.

The community is also home to a campus of the Northern College of Applied Arts and Technology. Northern College offers one-, two- and three-year programs in the fields of technology, business, human services, health and emergency services and veterinary sciences. Northern also offers post-diploma, apprenticeship, skills and job re-entry programs funded by the federal and provincial governments. The College also provides job related training. This includes providing the facilities for the delivery of third party programs, or the development of courses to meet the needs of a company.

Tourism

The Kirkland Lake area continues to support a strong tourist industry throughout the year. The summers are met with a number of anglers, hunters, and campers looking for adventure. Winters are especially popular as a result of the well maintained snow mobile trails in the area. There are also a number of tourist destinations in the area, including the recently developed Hockey Heritage North. It also has a strong community built on music. There are lots of children and teens who love to play guitar and put on shows for the town.

Hotels in the area include the following:

[Reeds Cottages Resort – (http://www.reedscottages.com)]

[The Comfort Inn – (http://www.comfortinn.ca)]

[The Howard Johnson Hotel – (http://www.howardjohnson.ca)]

Media

Kirkland Lake is served by radio station CJKL-FM (101.5) and the "Northern News".

Newspapers: Northern News ; Northern Ontario Business ; Northern Business Journal ; truenorthnews.com (Internet journal) Radio Stations: CJKL FM station (www.cjklfm.com , 101.5 FM); CHIM (99.1 FM); CBCR-FM (90.3FM)

Cable: Persona Communications – (www.personainc.ca) Satellite: Bell ExpressVu (www.expressvu.ca); Starchoice (www.starchoice.com) Internet Service Providers: NorthernTel (www.northerntel.ca); ONTERA (www.ontera.ca)

References

External links

* [http://www.town.kirklandlake.on.ca/ Town of Kirkland Lake] - official site
* [http://www.town.kirklandlake.on.ca/tourism/attractions_museum_4.php Sir Harry Oakes Chateau]
* [http://www.hockeyheritagenorth.ca Hockey Heritage North]
* [http://www.klmha.com Kirkland Lake Minor Hockey]
* [http://www.klgold.com Kirkland Lake Gold – Company Website]

Canadian City Geographic Location
North=Black River-Matheson
West=Kenogami Lake
Center=Kirkland Lake
East=King-Lebel, Larder Lake
South=Chamberlain