Land was first staked in the Hollinger and McIntyre area in 1910 and it is believed that nearby Gillies Lake was named after the discoverer of the Hollinger deposit, Alex Gillies. Both the Hollinger and McIntyre Mines went into operation separately in the period between 1910 and 1911 and operated continuously until their closure in 1968 and 1988, respectively. The McIntyre Mill continued to operate until 1990 as a custom mill. Some surface mining took place on the Hollinger Mine property in the late 1970's and early 1980's. Since 1910, over 19.5 million ounces of gold have been recovered from the Hollinger Mine while about 10.8  million ounces were recovered from the  McIntyre Mine along with 67,000 tons of copper.  

Porcupine Gold Mines (PGM) has completed a Pre-Feasibility Study on the Hollinger Project which is a review of the technical and economic viability of the project. This project seeks to assess the economic viability of returning the past-producing Hollinger and McIntyre Mines to production via the development of an open pit operation with  possible underground mining opportunities.

Porcupine Gold Mines is currently undertaking a Feasibility Study and beginning the formal Permitting and Consultation Stages of the project where communication of information to the public, collection of feedback and submission of permit applications to the government will take place. 

The Hollinger Project presents a unique challenge in mine development as it is located immediately adjacent to the downtown core of the City of Timmins. Due to this sensitive location, any plans for development must account not only for the usual economic factors, but must also ensure that the effects on nearby stakeholders are minimal. The community needs to be treated as a partner in this project in order for it to be successful. 

The “Hollinger Project Community Advisory Committee” mandate is to be an informed sounding board in liaison with PGM to assist in problem solving and to work towards building a sustainable community. 

The mandate of the CAC can be broken into the following: 

• Be informed of past, current, and future practices of PGM;
• To act as a sounding board between the community and PGM;
• To bring forth and review concerns expressed by local citizens, interest groups, or other stakeholders as they arise;
• To provide recommendations to the PGM General Manager who in turn heads the PGM Senior Management Team;
• To work together with PGM to create a sustainable community for present and future generations; 
• To verify, monitor, and comment on performance towards achieving a sustainable community.