James Macdonald Calderwood died in South Africa on 22nd April, 1947, at the age of 80.
He was born in Perth, Scotland, and from 1886 to 1888 studied mining engineering at Denver, Colorado, and attended special classes at the Golden School of Mines.
In March, 1888, he was appointed draughtsman and surveyor at the Anaconda smelting works and did general work also at mines in Butte for a year before being employed in charge of the erection of reduction works for the Alaska Gold Co. During the same period, until June, 1891, he acted as assayer to Alaska Treadwell Gold Mining Co., and as consulting engineer for Silver Queen mines and other companies in Alaska. He then became assistant engineer to Union Power Cu. at Portland, Oregon, and subsequently took up the appointment of superintendent of Utah Sulphur Co. Two years later he set up in partnership under the style of Calderwood & Laidlow, engineers and contractors, at Portland, Oregon.
In January, 1895, Mr. Calderwood was appointed agent for Messrs. Fraser & Chalmers at Helena, Montana, and operated mining and milling plants in Montana, Idaho, Oregon and British Columbia, and in 1896 went as their agent to Salt Luke City and Denver, finally joining their London office staff in 1898.
In September, 1900, he took up the position in Hungary of general manager of Rota. Anna Mines, Ltd., Kapnikbanya, but two years later settled in Johannesburg as consulting mining engineer. His appointments first included Klerksdorp Proprietary Mines, Ltd., and New Transvaal Gold Farms, Ltd., and from 1907 to 1915, Mr. Calderwood was consulting engineer to Messina (Transvaal) Development Co., Ltd., and to Vryheid (Natal) Railway, Coal and Iron Co., Ltd., from 1915 to 1922. Other companies for whom he acted were Montrose Diamond Mining Co., Ltd. (1920-24), Central West Gold Mining Co., Ltd., 1925, Pretoria Diamond Mines, Ltd. (1926-30), Tweefontein Platinum, Ltd. (1929 and 1938), Coronation Syndicate, Ltd. (1922-38), and Northern Transvaal (Messina) Copper Exploration, Ltd. (1929-41).
He was elected a Member of the Institution in 1902.
Vol. 57, Trans I.M.M. 1947-8, p. 470
