Kirkland Lake is a town and municipality located in Timiskaming District in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. The 2011 population, according to Statistics Canada, was 8,493.The community name was based on a nearby lake which in turn was named after Winnifred Kirkland, a secretary of the Ontario Department of Mines in Toronto. The lake was named by surveyor Louis Rorke in 1907. Ms Kirkland never visited the town, and the lake that bore her name no longer exists because of mine tailings. The community comprises Kirkland Lake, as well as Swastika, Chaput Hughes and Harvey Kirkland.Kirkland Lake was built on gold, but it is equally well known for producing world-famous hockey players. Indeed, legendary hockey broadcaster Foster Hewitt called Kirkland Lake "the town that made the NHL." The town celebrates this tradition at the Hockey Heritage North museum.Until January 1, 1972, the town was known as Township of Teck. A by-law was introduced, on July 20, 1971 to change the name of the municipality to Town of Kirkland Lake, effective January 1, 1972.HistoryTom Price discovered a boulder containing gold on a visit to the area in 1906.