Haunted Gold Mine On Lake Of The Woods

Russell Gainer led an expedition to Sultana Island on August 4th 2007.

Mining began in 1892 when three small veins were discovered on site. J.F. Caldwell found enormous profit in his first six months - he spent $30,000 erecting a five stamp mill on the island that fall.

By Citizen Correspondent Rob Campbell

Date Posted: 08/21/07

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The smell of fresh cooked pork sausages was carried through the air as we loaded our provisions into two canoes alongside the long wooden pier at Bare Point Marina. The four of us had already drove half-an-hour west from Kenora, through an unkempt Indian reservation named Rat Portage, to the northeast corner of the Lake of the Woods - it would be another hour or more before we stopped for anything to eat.

On this particular Saturday afternoon the world was bright and alive with the sound of children's voices, dogs barking and the ubiquitous hum of motor boat engines. None of us could fathom that our adventure would leave the land of living and descend into the darkness of the dead.

This is a true story of how a few good Christians paddled to Sultana Island to hear the ghostly voices of four dead miners at the bottom of the Number Two shaft.

My name is Russell Gainer, and I led the August 4th, 2007 expedition to uncover the history and search for valuable relics, in the bowels of Sultana Island. This is the story of a forgotten gold mine, and one that's not completely abandoned. Accompanied by Trixie Blasi©, Jasmine Edu and Chester Huff (and two four-legged friends, Theo and Poncho) my intrepid crew or fortune hunters set out with the best intentions.

The plan was simple - by canoes it would take us 40 minutes to cross the bay. We planned to explore Sultana Island all afternoon and then return before sunset. It was our objective to find the lost gold mine and rummage around through the remains of some of the original buildings.

Trixie and I have been trained by the very best dumpdiggers on how to dig century old foundations to find important relics- It's important to remember, this mission started as a treasure hunt, not a si©ance.

Sultana is one of the most famous gold mines on the Lake of the Woods. The original claim was staked in November, 1888 by Henry Bulmer, who sold the 27-acre property to a group of 15 men who called themselves the Ontario Mining Company.