Thomas James Bernard Donnelly was killed by Japanese troops during the occupation of Thailand in 1942, at the age of 34.
An Australian by birth, he started his career as a miner at Mount Isa mines, Queensland, in 1932. After a few months he became employment officer in the personnel department of that company, but in 1934 left to work for the Pine Creek Enterprise Gold N.L., first as machine miner and later as sampler and head sampler. In 1935 he was appointed underground foreman to the Fletcher’s Gully Gold N.L., and in the following year went to Malaya as dredge shift engineer to Kuala Kampar Tinfields, Ltd., at Malim Nawar, Perak, a subsidiary company of Anglo-Oriental (Malaya), Ltd. After a few months he was transferred to the field engineering staff of the parent company, in charge of alluvial boring operations in various parts of the Federated Malay States and near Port Darwin in Australia.
He took up in May, 1940, an appointment as attorney and manager for the T.A.L. Syndicate, Ltd., at the Muang Mark Mine, South Thailand, leaving in October, 1940, to return to Anglo-Oriental (Malaya), Ltd., as field superintendent and on their head office staff at Kuala Lumpur. In February, 1941, he was appointed to the position of assistant to the general manager of the Penyok mine of Thailand Tin Mines, Ltd.
Mr. Donnelly was elected a Student of the Institution in 1939, and was transferred to Associateship in 1942.
Vol. 52, Trans IMM 1942-43, p.894
