Dan O'Connor

Who was Dan O'Connor?

Dan O'Connor was a Canadian businessman and prospector from Pembroke, Ontario. In the late 1880s, O'Connor moved to Sudbury where he became associated with economy, life and industry, becoming the town's second mayor in 1894. Later, O'Connor travelled north where he founded the town of Temagami and opened Lady Evelyn Hotel, the Temagami Inn and Ronnoco Hotel.

When O'Connor moved to Temagami, he was hoping to find some mineral prospects. In 1899, O'Connor created test pits in east-central Strathy Township that later became Big Dan Mine, which is named after him. Other mines in Temagami that bare his name are Little Dan at Arsenic Lake and O'Connor near Lake Temagami. O'Connor continued to move northwards where he discovered deposits of gold. On March 29, 1933, O'Connor died in the city of Timmins where he was living with his family.