On the evening of Saturday, Aug. 27, Tom Haddow passed away in his seventy-sixth year. He died while in hospital, following a period of illness.
For those who didn't know him, Haddow was a well-known retired hard rock miner, as he was wont to say, who lived in Elliot Lake for years as his family grew up. He was also a historian and prolific journalist and writer.
He displayed enormous pride in his children, siblings and other family members.
In his earlier days, Haddow lived in Cobalt, among other northern Ontario mining communities.
Like many miners working in the twentieth century, Haddow joined the local workforce in a number of mining communities, and his family moved to those various locations as a result of the search for employment.
He also did a stint at the Elliot Lake Standard and worked in other northern Ontario communities as a newspaper writer.
After retirement, he and his wife Lynda lived in Orangeville.
"He was an incredible man and I was so proud to be his wife," she said.
"Tom and his family grew up in and around Gillies and Cobalt. He was born in Haileybury. He worked for the Globe and Mail right out of university as a reporter and many local northern papers over the years.
"Of course, he worked for years at Denison Mines," she added.
In recent years, Haddow was well-known for his prolific online postings of historical memorabilia and personal recollections which he passed along via the internet and social media, much of it based on his stops through his mining career.
Up until last year, the couple spent a good deal of time exploring old mine sites, towns and other points of historical interest in the north and other parts of Ontario and Canada.
Elliot Lake Mayor Dan Marchisella recalls his personal relationship with the Haddow family, as he grew up along with the Haddow children in Elliot Lake.
"Growing up Tom Haddow Jr. was my best friend and was also the best man at my wedding. I’ve known the family since kindergarten and Tom Sr. was always extremely kind and knowledgeable about every aspect of our town.
"I believe he did freelance work for the Standard for many years also. I’ve worked with all three of his boys at some point in life, each one having an amazing sense of humour and a great work ethic, which is a good sign of two amazing parents," Marchisella continued.
"He had the ability to make friends with anyone and always had a way of making me personally feel like I was meant to do something more.
"He will definitely be missed, and I can’t express enough how much pain I feel for the entire family," Marchisella concluded.
Lynda Haddow said her husband passed away in hospital after a hard-fought battle over the past six weeks.
He was surrounded by family in his final days.