“Harry Oakes – The Early Years” video
If you’ve been to Niagara Falls more than once, you’ve probably noticed the name Oakes on a lot of things. There is Oakes Garden Theatre, Oakes Park, and more. These are all named after Sir Harry Oakes. He was a prospector who discovered gold in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, and then bought some property in Niagara Falls. At one point he swapped the parcel of land where Oakes Garden Theatre now stands with another parcel of land. The name lives on with HOCO Entertainment & Resorts (Harry Oakes COmpany).
Anyway, yesterday I came across a video that the Museum of Northern History (housed in the Sir Harry Oakes Chateau) posted to YouTube. It is only a couple of minutes long, but talks a bit about Harry Oakes’ early years. You can see the video below, or on YouTube.
Click here to view the embedded video.
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ERNIE’S GOLD: A Prospector’s Tale – by Brian (Chip) Martin
This isn’t exactly about Niagara Falls, but it does relate to Harry Oakes, one of the key historical figures in Niagara Falls.
From RepublicOfMining.com:
In the early 1900s, young Ernie Martin immigrated from Staffordshire, England, to Canada to seek his fortune. He finally ended up in Kirkland Lake, where gold was to be found if you were willing to work at it. Ernie was. And so was Harry Oakes. The two of them became prospecting partners. Ernie and Harry worked hard and non-stop to find a vein of gold so they could start a mine.
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