High ceilings and soaring timber columns make this an architectural gem and community haven. Timber was chosen as the primary building material to reflect the importance of the forest products sector in the heritage, culture and economy of Timmins. Find out more about the history and background of the Timmins Public Library here. The library houses a comprehensive local history collection but, due to COVID-19, access is presently limited. You can still, however, explore the rich history of mining in Northern Ontario through a digitized version of the Porcupine Advance (1912-50).

The Timmins Museum: National Exhibition Centre is a public resource dedicated to the presentation, promotion and preservation of heritage. As part of Digital Doors Open, take a peek into the back room through a slide show that features pieces from the collection. The museum is pleased to report that it is now open to visitors once again. You can explore their new permanent exhibition “Where We Stand: Stories of the Land” and visit the temporary exhibition “Gemstones or Not?,” on loan from Minéro : le musée Thetford Mines. Find out more about visiting the museum and hours of operation on their website.

The old Catholic Cemetery (1912-16) was moved from the churchyard on Fifth Avenue to this location in 1917, under direction of Father Theriault. Check this map to see how, historically, Protestants were buried on adjacent land, as well as the position of the Legion site, which was established in 1937. All sites were amalgamated into the Timmins Memorial Cemetery in 1966. It remains one of three cemeteries under management by the City of Timmins. Points of interest include a monument to victims of the 1928 Hollinger Mine Disaster, the headstone of hometown hockey hero Bill Barilko (watch the 2016 Tragically Hip’s performance of Fifty Mission Cap), and graves bearing the names of several well-known families and early pioneers of the Porcupine area.

The Timmins Fire Hall was built in 1957 to replace the old station that was adjacent to the Municipal Building on Algonquin Blvd. Porcupine established its first organized fire department shortly after the Great Fire of 1911. This tragic fire destroyed the mining settlement and took more than 70 lives. During Digital Doors Open, learn more about the fire hall by exploring the photo archive from the Timmins Museum: National Exhibition Centre, and read more about the department’s history on the City of Timmins website. The jurisdiction of this hall’s fire chief includes six other fire halls: Mountjoy, South Porcupine, Schumacher, Whitney, Connaught and Victor M. Power Airport. Watch the video below to see their firefighters in training! (Coming soon!)

On its official opening in 1938, the Municipal Building in Timmins was feted in the Porcupine Advance as “one of the most modern municipal centres in Northern Ontario.” Read more from the June 6, 1938 article in the Porcupine Advance. Explore the view from the city hall webcam. And learn about the most recent addition to the city hall – the staircase mural by artist Mique Michelle, completed in 2019 – part of the Indigenous Teachings Murals Project. You can read more about this project in the 2022 Timmins Tourism Guide.

Freemasons are proud of their heritage and the principles by which they live: brotherly love, relief and truth. The Masonic Hall in Timmins, built in 1915, is governed by the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario and is one of more than 650 lodges in the jurisdiction. Read the Golden Beaver Lodge pamphlet to find out more about the history of Freemasonry in Timmins or view the slideshow to take a virtual tour of the Lodge Room.

From 1919, the Hollinger Mine embarked on a building project to house its growing workforce. More than 300 green and red tar-paper houses were built in rows on the Hollinger townsite. This particular house was originally located on the Underground Mine Tour Site and then moved to its current location at the Timmins Museum. Read local historian Diane Armstrong’s account of how this house was saved from demolition. During Digital Doors Open, join the museum staff for breakfast inside the Hollinger House to find out more!