John Kostuik exemplified the rough and ready ways of the hard-rock miner. A mining engineer, he cut his teeth by somehow managing to eke out of profits for what was in the late 1930s the lowest-grade mine in Canada. Howey Gold Mines, in fact, proved to be a training ground for low-cost mining methods.
In his day, Robert J. Jowsey was known as the dean of mine makers. He was indeed a charter member of Canadian mining, a true, “dog-team and canoe” prospector, whose career flourished through the frenetic heyday of the Cobalt silver rush, the goldfields of Kirkland Lake, and the base metal plays in Manitoba.
While every graduate engineer is familiar with the Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer, there may be a few who do not know that the ritual dates back to 1922 and a certain Professor Herbert Edward Terrick Haultain. In a talk he gave that year, Professor Haultain recommended developing an oath or creed for graduating engineers.
Canada is known as a centre of excellence in mining geophysics, and much of the credit for this achievement goes to Harold Seigel, an extraordinary geophysicist who conceived and pioneered several new methods of mineral exploration.
David Burchell was a pioneer in Canadian coal mining. He was an explorer, with five underground coal mines to his credit. He was a builder, with his own corporation, and he contributed greatly to the advancement of coal mining technology in Canada.
Alfred Powis is a company builder with exceptional leadership skills and a keen eye for opportunity. During his tenure as chief executive officer at Noranda, he was instrumental in creating one of the largest natural resource conglomerates in Canada, with few rivals internationally.
Although he never discovered a mineral deposit, owned a mine or worked in one, Benjamin Bell was, for almost two decades, the Canadian mining industry’s most prominent spokesman. He played a pivotal role in the organization of provincial mining associations and in bringing about their federation and subsequent amalgamation into the Canadian Mining Institute, which later became the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM).
A lateral thinker long before the term was coined, Harry Warren applied his intellectual curiosity and scientific mind to the field of geochemistry, where he made remarkable contributions to prospecting and mineral exploration. He was a pioneer in a discipline which came into its own, to a large extent, through his efforts.
As a scientist, an explorationist, an entrepreneur, an innovator and a mining leader, Dr. Norman B. Keevil has contributed mightily to his industry, his province, and his country.
Michael J. Knuckey’s induction into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame recognizes his leadership role in the discovery or development of at least 10 mineral deposits, of which two are truly world class. Of these deposits, eight have become mines.
