A favourite part of our job is assisting with research queries. It’s our mandate, after all, to share the history of the Cobalt Mining Camp. We are delighted to hear from someone with connections to Cobalt.
On a personal level, helping with research questions ticks many boxes. We meet new people, see new photos, and we always – ALWAYS – learn something.
As you can imagine, depending on the nature of the question, research can be time-consuming. We aim to respond as soon as we are able, and to reply with a thoroughly-researched answer.
FREE!
After you’ve checked the search function on our home page, or our ever-growing list of research resources, here are free online resources you may not know about.
The Porcupine [Timmins] Advance Issues from 1912 to 1950 contain lots of mining news from Cobalt. After the silver boom ended, many families moved north to work in the gold mines.
The Temiskaming Shores Public Library has captured the Birth/Marriages/Deaths from The Temiskaming Speaker. You will find a link at the bottom of their eResources page
Canadiana took down their paywall a couple years ago. Among the archives are issues of Toronto World.
Brampton Public Library offers free membership to residents of Ontario. After you register for a card, you can access the Globe, Globe and Mail as well as the Toronto Star.
Hathi Trust Digital Library hosts much of the same material that you find on Google Books, but we prefer the quality of the display and what we consider to be superior functionality of the search features.
Looking for an old mine site? Here’s a sample of the historic claims maps from Coleman Township.
The Toronto Public Library is constantly digitizing and updating their archives. Bookmark this site, and check in periodically.
Other online resources
With some careful searching of the newspaper archives, you may be able to find details of your family’s time in Cobalt and the region. Something may have been reported in either the Temiskaming Speaker or the Cobalt and North Bay Nugget. Digital copies of these publications are online, but a paid subscription is required.
A few members of the Cobalt Historical Society have access to these records. We are happy to search these papers, but since we are a volunteer organization, we ask that you consider a donation or membership to the society. You can find out more on our website.
Teck Centennial Public Library in Kirkland Lake hold an archive of the Northern News. Forward requests to Cheryl Lafreniere, the chief librarian. The library accepts donations for research services.
Now Online! (and also Free!)
The Haileyburian, published by Haileybury’s founder C C Farr is now available. The Cobalt Historical Society, in partnership with the Haileybury Heritage Museum worked together to bring this partial collection online.
Happy Hunting
If you know of any resources, free or with paid subscription, that are not on this list, let us know!
And if we can help in any way, be sure to send us an email.