North West Development Company
Non-producing
In 1897 the North West Development Company sent R.J. Gilbert and a party of prospectors to Red Lake to investigate the area’s mineralization. The party made the over 321-km (200-mile) journey from Dinorwic, ON to Red Lake, settling on Slate Bay. The group found quartz veins with free gold that was able to be flaked off. The Gilbert party staked eight claims and were preparing to leave for Hamilton when Gilbert accidentally shot himself in the chest and died.
The group wrapped Gilbert’s body and loaded it into their canoes and headed to Rat Portage (Kenora, ON). Here the party bought mining equipment before they returned to Red Lake. James Tyrrell arrived in late fall-early winter of 1897, to survey the claims. A 7.6-metre (25-foot) shaft was sunk, and the group built two cabins on the site. The remnants of the Gilbert party left Red Lake in early 1898 and the site was abandoned.
The group wrapped Gilbert’s body and loaded it into their canoes and headed to Rat Portage (Kenora, ON). Here the party bought mining equipment before they returned to Red Lake. James Tyrrell arrived in late fall-early winter of 1897, to survey the claims. A 7.6-metre (25-foot) shaft was sunk, and the group built two cabins on the site. The remnants of the Gilbert party left Red Lake in early 1898 and the site was abandoned.