Thomas Kirkham Jones died suddenly on 5th December, 1952, at West London Hospital. He was 59 years of age.
He was for eighteen months a pupil of Messrs. Macer & Co., quantity surveyors, in London before entering the Royal School of Mines in October, 1919, and in 1912 joined Messrs. Dick Kerr & apprentice. He returned to the Royal School of Mines in 1913 to resume the mining course, but on the outbreak of war in 1914 joined the 1st East Yorkshire Regiment, being seconded to the Royal Engineers. He attained the rank of captain, and served with 173 (Tunnelling) Coy. and various Field Coys. in France and Italy. He was awarded the M.C.
Early in 1919 he returned to the Royal School of Mines and completed the mining course, gaining the Associateship of the School and the Diploma of the Imperial College. He intended to qualify for the associateship in mining geology but left the School in 1920 to take up an appointment as forest engineer in the Imperial Forest Engineering Service of India. He went to North America for twelve months to study the mechanical aspect of timber handling, and in 1921 visited France, Switzerland, Austria and South Africa before returning to the Punjab. He left the Imperial Forest Engineering Service in 1930 to become under-secretary to the Government Public Works Department (Electrical), and in 1935 transferred to the Irrigation branch of Indian Service of Engineers. The following year he took the appointment of Principal of the Government School of Engineering at Rasul, leaving in September, 1937, to return to the Irrigation branch as executive engineer, Hafizabad division. He was transferred to the Raya division in October, 1939, for two years, and worked in the Rasul division again for a few months in 1941. From August, 1941, he served in the Defence Department, Government of India, and in February, 1943, was appointed executive engineer of the Khanewal division.
Mr. Jones was resident in London from 1947 until the time of his death. He was elected a Student of the Institution in 1917 and was transferred to Associate Membership in 1924.
Vol. 62, Trans IMM 1952-53, pp.418-419
