Hans Herman Smith died in Uppsala, Sweden, on 16th February, 1957, the age of 84, after a long illness.
Mr. Smith was a Norwegian. He was trained at Freiberg Mining Academy, Saxony, from 1890 to 1895, gaining the diploma of mining engineer. He his career at iron mines in Gellivare, Lappland, in 1895, and in the following year worked at the Killifreth tin mine, Cornwall. After reporting on properties in Lappland he became local manager at Kjoli mine, Reitan, Norway, in 1897 fit. Cape Copper Co., and three years later was appointed local manager of the Nautanen copper mines in Lappland. He reported on mines in Scandinavia 1902, and then went to Canada, working for a year as assistant manager of Belmoor gold mine, Ontario, in the service of Bede Metal and Chemical Co., Ltd., of Newcastle, remaining with that company as assistant manager of their mines in Reitan, Norway.
He set up in private practice as a consulting mining engineer in 1904 headquarters in Trondhjem, some time later moving to Oslo. He specialized in pyrites, copper, iron ore and molybdenite. In 1913 he was appointed consulting mining engineer and chief of the mining department for Det Norske Aktieseskab for Elektrokemisk Industri, Oslo, and he had served on the board of several mining companies in Norway. He was a member of several committees, including those for new mining concession law and for professional fees.
The Transactions of the Institution contain three papers by Mr. Smith: ‘Notes on the Skorovas iron pyrites deposit, Norway’ (vol. 32, 1922-23); ‘Discovery of tourmaline in a Norwegian pyrites deposit’ (vol. 36, 1926-27); and ‘Visible tourmaline in Norwegian pyrite’ (vol. 62, 1952-53).
Mr. Smith was elected a Member of the Institution in 1905. He became a member of the Norwegian Geological Society in 1926; he was made a life member of Norske Ingeniöforening in 1938 and was similarly honoured in 1939 by Norsk Bergindustriforening.
Vol. 67, Trans I.M.M., 1957-58, p.572
