GOLD: The grandfather of Canadian gold mines, Dome, is closing after more than 100 years

ONTARIO – First opened in 1910, the Dome gold mine near Timmins is closing for good. Owner Goldcorp made the announcement last month, and the last shift will be worked by the middle of this year. Dome was an underground operation for the first 80 years of its life. In the 1980s additional gold was discovered near surface. That meant that roads, buildings and the mill had to be relocated to accommodate open pit mining. Unlike most other mines, production at Dome went from underground to surface production, and the original mine was closed in 2004. Underground mining resumed at Dome in 2006, and will continue until later this year. Goldcorp (Goldcorp.com) intends to “optimize” production from the Hollinger open pit, Hoyle Pond underground mine and Dome mill, all of which will continue to produce gold “for the foreseeable future.”