Walter Maxwell Henderson-Scott died on 6th December, 1959, at the age of 74.
Mr. Henderson-Scott was educated at Westminster School and trained at the Royal School of Mines between 1904 and 1907, gaining the A.R.S.M. in Mining and the de la Beche Gold Medal. He was also awarded a £50 postgraduate scholarship by the Institution, and travelled to Colorado to undergo a year’s post-graduate course at Tomboy Gold Mines, Ltd., Telluride. He remained to work during 1909 as assistant and later superintendent to Lindsey, Townsend and Livermore, and assistant manager of Smuggler Union Mining Co. and Contention Mining Co., Telluride, also Marysville Dredging Co., and Ashburton Mining Co., CaIifornia. He carried out examinations in North America for New England Exploration Co., of Boston, Massachusetts, and for the General Mining and Metallurgical Syndicate of London.
From 1911 to 1912 Mr. Henderson-Scott was superintendent of Wettlauffer-Lorraine Silver Mines, Ltd. , at Cobalt, Ontario, and then spent a year as engineer-in-charge of a party investigating mineral resources in Brazil for the Brazil Company of Philadelphia. In 1913 he was engaged as resident manager in Colombia, South America, for Breitung Mines Corporation of New York.
Mr. Henderson-Scott returned to England on the outbreak of war and was associated with the late Mr. A.G. Charleton, M.I.M.M., until 1916.
He had, however, obtained his commission in the 1st Queen’s Westminster Rifles in 1914 and served continuously in France from November, 1914, until demobilization in January, 1919. He was appointed to the staff in August, 1915, and became Assistant Provost Marshal. He was demobilized with the rank of Major.
After the war Mr. Henderson-Scott was engaged as secretary of the newly-created Imperial Mineral Resources Bureau until it merged with the Imperial Institute in 1925. He then became the first principal of the Mineral Resources Division, later to become the Mineral Resources Division of the present Overseas Geological Surveys. He left in 1929 to work up a consulting practice, becoming adviser to Ventures, Ltd., and their consulting engineer in Europe and Africa. He joined Exploration Co., Ltd., in 1938, a group of mining and finance companies in London, of which he was chairman and later, in 1943, managing director. He remained on the board of this company until 1951, and retained other directorships of financial investment companies until his death.
Mr. Henderson-Scott joined the Institution as a Student in 1905, became an Associate Member in 1913 and a Member in 1920. Between 1931 and 1932 he served as President of the R.S.M. Old Students’ Association.
Vol. 70, Trans IMM 1960-61, pp.157-8
