[11] The first attempt at a permanent European presence in the area did not come until 1785, nearly two decades after Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years' War and took over its territory in North America east of the Mississippi River.

Philip Turnor, a surveyor and cartographer for the Hudson's Bay Company, established a trading outpost at Fredrick House Lake, about 30 km (19 mi) north-east of present-day downtown Timmins.

Nearby competition, and the difficulty of navigating the Abitibi and Fredrick House rivers by canoe, often resulted in the post being unsupplied.

However, temporary log shelters were put in place nearby to facilitate fur trading until 1821, when the post was officially declared closed by the Hudson's Bay Company.

They set out for Porcupine Lake in 1907 and dug several test pits in the surrounding area, but none of them had near the amount of gold which D'Aigle's team was seeking.

They eventually abandoned their tools in the last pit they dug, approximately 8 km west of Porcupine Lake, and returned home.

Earlier in the season he had found a "dome" of quartz that contained large veins of gold stretching several hundred feet in length and 46 m (150 ft) in width.

Wilson advised Hollinger & Gillies that all the good sites in a 10 km (6.2 mi) radius had been claimed, so the duo went slightly further west.

While Gilles was inspecting the abandoned pits, Hollinger pulled a bit of moss from a nearby quartz outcropping and revealed a large vein of gold.

[18][19] Hollinger Mines was incorporated later that year with five equal partners consisting of Noah and Henry Timmins; Duncan and John McMartin (also brothers); and Mattawa attorney David Dunlap.

[20] A popular founding myth of Timmins and the Porcupine area states that a man named Harry Preston slipped on moss and uncovered gold.

Harry Preston arrived in the Porcupine area as a part of a team led by Jack Wilson in June 1909, where they discovered a large "dome shaped quartz outcrop".

According to Gilles's report, while he inspected D’Aigle’s abandoned work, Hollinger was looking at some nearby quartz when he peeled back a bit of moss, revealing a large vein of gold.

[15]: 92 I was cutting a discovery post and Benny was pulling some moss of rocks a few feet away when he suddenly let a roar out of him and threw his hat at me.

[16][17] The Canadian Pacific Railway expansion to was also critical, as it enabled travellers from Toronto to go directly north instead of taking a time-consuming detour around Eastern Ontario.

The combined mines behaved more like a "very influential industrial citizen", rather than a single company that dominated all aspects of civilian life.

Evacuation efforts began on the morning of July 11, with women and children being ferried to the opposite end of Porcupine Lake.

[24]: 19 In November 1912, 1,200 members of the Western Federation of Miners Local 145 held a strike at all three mines in response to a proposal to lower their wages.

[32] News of the war and letters from soldiers abroad were frequently published in the town's local newspaper, The Porcupine Advance (TPA).

Flags and decorations were brought out, and from an early hour in the morning, groups of boys and girls were out with their horns, whistles and tin pan bands.

After the noon hour, the crowds began to gather in the main part of the town, one of the chief centres of interest being Marshall-Ecclestone’s window where an effigy of the Kaiser was displayed.

Dressed in long boots, brass helmet, iron crosses and shining sword, the wooden Kaiser was stuffed with oakum, ready for the flames.The Great Depression did not adversely affect the economy of the area, and jobs were available in mining and lumber.

During the late spring and summer, temperatures can rise considerably, sometimes accompanied by high humidity and unstable air masses.

[5] From the foundation of the city, Jewish emigrants, mostly from Russia and Eastern Europe came to the town in order to work in the mines industry.

The community was not isolated and maintained good relationships with non-Jews, especially emigrants from Russia and Eastern Europe, who spoke the same languages they did.

[56] Snowmobiling impacts the Timmins economy, as tourists travel from all over North America to explore area trails.

Nearby communities include Barbers Bay, Dugwal, Finn Road, Hoyle, Ice Chest Lake, McIntosh Springs and Nighthawk.

[64] Algoma University also offers degrees in Social Work and Community Development on the Northern College Campus in South Porcupine.

Regional ground transportation is provided by Ontario Northland Motor Coach Services operating out of the Timmins Transit Terminal.

To the north of Timmins, Cochrane is the southern terminus of the Ontario Northland Railway's Polar Bear Express.