Preston Erie St. Clair Locke was drowned in an accident at Vancouver on October 6th, 1938.
He was an American citizen and received his technical education in the School of Mines of Columbia University. He graduated in 1909 and in the following year obtained an appointment in Arizona with the Ray Consolidated Copper Company.
In 1918 he went to Chile and worked in several capacities for the Braden Copper Co. and in 1915 he returned to New York and became field engineer for the Jackling interests. A year later began his association with the American Smelting & Refining Co. as their resident engineer on examinations. This appointment took him to Spokane, Seattle, New York, and Lima. His Peruvian visit began in October, 1920, and a few months later he was appointed general manager of the Northern Peru Mining & Smelting Co., a subsidiary of the American firm. In 1927 he, returned to the direct service of the American Smelting & Refining Co. as resident engineer in Victoria, B.C., and later he came to London in a similar position.
From 1931 to 1933 Mr. Locke was a director of the Mining Trust, Ltd., and later he returned to the United States and Canada. He was a life member of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers.
He was elected a Member of the Institution in 1929.
Vol. 48, Trans IMM 1938-39, pp.835-6
