A plaque erected in 1996 by the Township of Hamilton with the assistance of the Ontario Heritage Foundation and the Cobourg and District Historical Society reads:

MINA BENSON (1870 – 1956) AN EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY CANADIAN FEMALE EXPLORER OF LABRADOR AND WRITER, MINA BENSON WAS BORN ON THIS PROPERTY, LOT 28, CONCESSION 7, TOWNSHIP OF HAMILTON, COUNTY OF NORTHUMBERLAND. FROM JUNE 27 TO AUGUST 27, 1905, BENSON COMPLETED THE ILL-FATED 1903 LABRADOR EXPEDITION OF HER LATE HUSBAND, LEONIDAS HUBBARD JR., A DISTANCE OF 576 MILES FROM THE NORTHWEST RIVER TO UNGAVA BAY. HER MAPS, ACCEPTED BY THE AMERICAN GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY, WERE SOME OF THE FIRST TO RECORD THE NASKAUPI RIVER AND GEORGE RIVER SYSTEMS. IN 1908 SHE PUBLISHED AN ACCOUNT OF HER TRIP, A WOMAN’S WAY THROUGH UNKNOWN LABRADOR. LATER SHE REMARRIED, HAD THREE CHILDREN AND MOVED TO ENGLAND, WHERE SHE DIED.

Our October meeting will be presented by Karin Wells, an internationally recognized CBC radio documentary maker with a long and varied career. Trained as a lawyer, Karin has produced documentaries on subjects as varied as post conflict resolution in Mozambique and victim rights to opera in the English countryside. She has reported from more than 50 countries and was regularly heard on CBC Radio’s The Sunday Edition as both a guest host and documentary maker. All members are invited to join us electronically on Tuesday, October 27, 2020 at 07:30 PM. Please register in advance by visiting  (zoom link no longer valid).

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about watching the webinar.  If you have any questions concerning registration, please contact Brian Murphy, Membership Chair at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.