KIRKLAND LAKE - A historic château faced a year of uncertainty, change and progress in 2024.
While the fate of the Sir Harry Oakes Château was up in the air, residents rallied to save the eccentric prospector’s home and upgrades were started on the building.
It all started in March when Kirkland Lake set an end date for its decades-long lease agreement with the Ontario Heritage Trust (OHT), which owns the Sir Harry Oakes Château.
This decision came after a building condition assessment revealed repair costs totalling $1.2 million, leaving a $950,000 funding gap. Town officials deemed sustaining operations at the château untenable.
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Throughout the summer, the Museum of Northern History — which is located in the building — remained open, welcoming visitors until its closure on Sept. 1. By year’s end, the town had fully vacated the property, marking the end of its role as operator since 1981.
The building is nearly a century old and was built by Oakes, who became a multi-millionaire during Kirkland Lake’s gold rush. He built the home in 1929 to use during visits to his mining properties. His permanent home was in Niagara Falls.
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In 1934 Oakes moved to the Bahamas as a protest against the Canadian tax system and was knighted by King George VI in 1939. Four years later, Oakes was murdered at his Bahamas home. The crime remains unsolved.
The uncertainty surrounding the château’s future sparked public outcry and galvanized a group of residents into action. The Oakes Project: Heritage, Arts and Tourism (TOPHAT) formed shortly after the town’s announcement, determined to preserve the museum and its legacy.
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TOPHAT swiftly launched a petition urging the town to continue its lease, amassing nearly 8,500 signatures.
The effort gained momentum when Alamos Gold and Agnico Eagle Mines pledged major financial support. Together with a “royalty partner,” the companies committed $250,000 annually for three years, securing operating costs to keep the museum open at its current location.
By September, TOPHAT had become a registered not-for-profit corporation. The group also established a board of directors, including representatives from Agnico Eagle Mines and Alamos Gold.
While the future of the museum operations was uncertain early in the year, the OHT moved forward with critical repairs to the château.
In June, the trust allocated $740,000 to address structural and exterior issues, including stabilizing the front porch and rear balcony, repairing the north retaining wall and upgrading roofing and water drainage systems.
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David Leonard, OHT’s senior marketing and communications specialist, confirmed the project had been in development since 2022 and was awarded to Roof Tile Management under the supervision of Stevens Architects.
In mid-December, Leonard provided an update on the initiative.
“The trust’s capital work at the Sir Harry Oakes Château is near substantial completion at the end of 2024. The two final pieces of the project, which are window replacement and roofing work, will be completed in Spring 2025,” he said.
