Archibald Allan Clifford Dickson died at Derby on 19th May, 1954, at the age of 74.
He was born in India and served an apprenticeship in mechanical engineering at Howrah, Bengal, from 1897 to 1900, when he left for England to obtain further training.
In 1904 he returned to India as assistant manager of the Dickson-Irwin (Kodarma) Mica Mining Syndicate, Ltd., and from 1911 to 1915 managed his own mica mines and dressing plant. On the acquisition of his property by the Mica Mining and Manufacturing Co., Ltd., he was appointed general manager and director, holding this position until he set up in private practice in England in 1919 as consulting mining engineer.
He opened a mica and micanite factory in London in October, 1922, and became manager of the mica branch of Malcolm and Allan, Ltd., which subsequently separated from the main firm and became Mica Products, Ltd. Mr. Dickson remained in full charge until 1927, when he again set up his own business and continued dressing mica and designing plant for wet-grinding mica. From 1934 to 1936 he was managing director of Minerals Development, Ltd., and in August, 1936, sold his business of mica powder manufacture to The Wall Paper Manufacturers, Ltd. He was that company’s technical adviser and the factory operated under his sole charge, first at Timperley, Cheshire, and later at Derby.
He retired in 1948, but in 1950 became consulting mining engineer to Colin Stewart, Ltd., of Winsford, Cheshire.
Mr. Dickson was elected to Associate Membership of the Institution in 1907. He had many articles published in the technical press and was author of a book entitled ‘The mica miner’s and prospector’s guide’, published in 1919.
Vol. 62, Trans IMM 1952-53, p.79
