Matheson

History

Settlement of Matheson began in 1907 at the same time that the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway was built in the area, and was originally called McDougall Chute, named after Baziel McDougall, a local trapper. It was renamed in 1912 in honour of Colonel Arthur J. Matheson. Prospecting started in 1909. The Croesus Mine (1914–1918) became "one of the richest mines in Canada". Gold was like "plums in pudding" and "one gold nugget was egg shaped, two inches long and one and a quarter across." A total of 16 companies operated in the Harker Holloway area from 1917 to 1925, including Harker Gold Mines. P.A. McDermott found a gold-bearing zone in 1922, which became American Barrick's Holt-McDermott Mine in 1988. Located in the Abitibi greenstone belt, the mine produced 60,000 ounces of gold in 1994. The Great Fire of 1916 left 243 dead. In 1945, the Township of Black River was incorporated, consisting of the geographic townships of Stock, Taylor, Carr, Beatty, Bond, Currie, Bowman, Hislop, and part of Walker. In 1969, the Township of Black River and the Town of Matheson merged to form the Township of Black River-Matheson, and in 1973, it was enlarged through the addition of Playfair Township and Kingham Improvement District.

Most-observed species

• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  900
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  854
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  832
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  752
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  639
• Hairy Woodpecker

  Leuconotopicus villosus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  592
• Common Grackle

  Quiscalus quiscula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  578
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  568

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2010-12-16
  5 km WSW of Kirkland Lake, Canada
• M 3.7 — 2006-01-03
  68 km NNW of Iroquois Falls, Canada