After perusing some old files of my late father and grandmother, I came across some certificates from Goldbanks Mines and Goldbanks Kirkland Mines. I would like to do a search of this company but am not sure where to begin.
Karen Pittao,
Mount Brydges, Ont.
The company did surface prospecting and a little diamond drilling, then sunk a 74-ft. (22-metre) shaft and did a little underground drifting. They sunk a second shaft, even shorter than the first, some time between 1933 and 1937.
In June 1937, the company, which had run out of funds, refinanced with a share consolidation in which holders received one new Goldbanks Mines share for two of Goldbanks Kirkland.
The southwestern-Ontario connection was still strong: the company’s head office had moved to London; McKinnon was president; Thomas Clift of London, vice-president; Baker, secretary; and Andrew Gray of Inwood was on the board. The other board members — Gordon MacDonald, Walter Little and Joseph Edwards — were all from Kirkland Lake.
Through 1938, and sporadically up to 1942, the company did work (mainly drilling) on the Teck Twp. claims. The second shaft was deepened to 75 ft. (23 metres), but most further work was suspended during the war years.
Following the war, the company did a magnetic survey on the property and followed it up with surface prospecting. The next campaign was planned for 1950, but it appears Goldbanks could not raise any more money. The company was idle until 1961, and its charter was cancelled that December.
I have a relative who purchased 100 shares in Opemisca Explorers Ltd. in July 1958. The original registrar for the shares was The Eastern Trust Company of Montreal. The shares were purchased from Hugh Mackay & Co. I am interested in tracing Opemisca Explorers and in finding out whether the shares have any value.
Kevin Burnett
Carnoustie, Scotland
Another company, Quebec Chibougamau Goldfields, formed
Through those years Opemisca was a dedicated follower of staking rushes, tacking on properties in the Matagami and Bachelor Lake camps in the Abitibi greenstone belt of northwestern Quebec, and even a copper bet near Shawinigan, and dropping them about as quickly.
About 1961, though, Opemisca tied on to a recent discovery by Opemiska Copper Mines (a Noranda affiliate, despite the similar name) — right back home in Levy Twp. That property turned up encouraging enough results to keep Opemisca going into the late 1960s.
In 1969, Opemisca was reorganized under the name
United Asbestos moved into the
In 1984, the preferred shares were consolidated, with one new Series A traded for five old shares. The preferred series did pay dividends, at a rate of $2.50 annually. In November 1985, the Series A shares were converted to 3.8 common shares and a purchase warrant. The warrant, exercisable at $6, expired at the end of 1988.
So depending on what credit may have been given for fractional shares, a 100-share holding in Opemisca Exploration would probably be worth between 24 and 27 shares of
I have a certificat of 200 shares named Opemisca explorers ltd date 1958 the paper certifies that Molson&co.fully paid the 200 shares that my father investe on sept.1958.Is there a way to cash this certificat and where should i go or how to proscede