On August 15, 1866,
Ontario Divisional Court clerk employee and part-time prospector Marcus Herbert Powell discovered gold while prospecting for copper on an Ontario farm near
Madoc owned by John Richardson. Powell initially leased 19 acres of the farm in exchange for 50% of what gold could be extracted. Powell then sold the farm to two Chicago miners called Lombard and Hardin for $36,000. The same year, the town of
Eldorado was founded to accommodate the rush of prospectors to the area. Eighty hotels and accommodations were constructed to house the influx of 4,000 prospectors and tourists who travelled from as far away as
British Columbia and
California. The Deloro, Gilmour, Cordova, Feigle, Bannockburn, and Golden Fleece mines all opened. After lower quantities of gold than expected were found at the other mines, suspicions arose that Powell was lying about finding gold. A group of 100 prospectors and miners forced their way into the Richardson Mine's property to inspect it for themselves. Powell negotiated with the crowd, and agreed to let the group's leader "Caribou" Cameron inspect the cave, which he did, with one other man, before the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrived from
Madoc to support Powell. By 1869, only 100 ounces of gold, (worth $1,500 to $2,000 at the time) was extracted from the mine and no further gold was found beyond what was found in the first cavern. The various other mines that has lower production and also quickly closed. == See also ==