Canadian Mining Hall of Fame to induct nine

Nine more individuals are to be inducted into The Canadian Mining Hall of Fame on Jan. 11, 1993, says the Hall’s board of directors. They were chosen from a nomination list of 17 candidates.

The induction ceremony will take place at the Hall of Fame’s annual banquet at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto.

Established five years ago, the Hall of Fame honors those legendary mine finders and builders who contributed to elevating the Canadian industry to world-class status.

These nine new inductees will join a group of 37 members honored in previous years.

Sponsors of the Hall of Fame are The Mining Association of Canada, the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum, and The Northern Miner (a member of the Southam Mining Group).

Maurice Russell Brown 1912-

During his 43 years with The Northern Miner, a weekly newspaper, Maurice Brown has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Canadian mining industry. His reporting on mineral discoveries, operating mines and the people who find, develop and operate them, has enhanced the industry’s reputation for openness and facilitated the free flow of information that has helped make it a world leader.

Joseph Errington 1871-1942

Joseph Errington embodied the spirit of mining prior to the Second World War as the country pulled itself out of the Depression in the 1930s and the industry became a prime force in creating a prosperous postwar Canada. His fortune was based on the success of the Little Long Lac gold mine near Geraldton, Ont., but his most remarkable undertaking was the development of the Steep Rock iron mine west of Thunder Bay, Ont.

Neil Hilton George 1908-88

Dedicated to the prevention of accident and injury, Neil George was instrumental in establishing Canada’s exemplary record in mine safety. Part common sense, part labor relations, his system of mine safety is based on awareness, the need to empower miners to be responsible for their own safety and the active involvement of mine

supervisors. His legacy is a better life for those who work in mines each day. James Gerald McCrea 1898-1953

James McCrea was instrumental in building Dome Mines into a giant of the Canadian mining industry. He was responsible for acquiring and developing Dome’s earliest subsidiary operation — the Sigma gold mine in northwestern Quebec in the early 1930s, and the Campbell Red Lake gold mine in Ontario. He was also credited with creating Dome Exploration (Western) Ltd. which later became Dome Petroleum.

Richard Valentine Porritt 1901-85

Richard Porritt was the man who set the pace and style that marked a “Noranda man” — tough and fast-moving. During his 48 years with Noranda, he brought the Waite-Amulet mine near Rouyn into production in 1927 and was general manager of Noranda subsidiary Gaspe Copper Mines during the development and startup in 1955 of the Gaspe copper mine in eastern Quebec.

Louis Secondo Renzoni 1913-

Technical innovation spurred the development of Sudbury, Ont., as the world’s premier mining and metallurgical centre. Louis Renzoni, as a chemical scientist working on the nickel refining operation of Inco Ltd., did much to further the company’s fortunes and those of the entire industry. Particularly noteworthy was his work to reduce sulphurous emissions which, at the same time, improved the recovery of economic minerals.

Mervyn Arthur Upham 1917-

Mervyn Upham played a significant role developing 22 mines in Canada alone, several more internationally. They include the first uranium mine at Elliot Lake, Ont.; the first mine to extract Saskatchewan’s long-known potash deposits; the first major gold mine in Nevada’s Carlin area; and the Granduc mine in British Columbia where a 11.6-mile tunnel was driven to reach the deposit, the longest single-heading tunnel in the world at the time. Ossian Edward Walli 1903-91

Ossian Walli never discovered a mineral deposit or operated a mining company, but during his 22 years as principal at the Haileybury School of Mines he influenced hundreds of students who did. Appointed to the position in 1945, he administered its operations and taught classes until his retirement in 1969. Walli built a reputation for the school that is recognized today in mining communities around the world.

Harold Madison Wright 1908-

Harold Wright has been associated in some measure with virtually every significant mining operation in Western Canada and the Yukon during the past 45 years, as well as many operations internationally, through Wright Engineers, the consulting firm he established in 1947. He was also the founding president, and continues as a director, of Western Mines Ltd., now Westmin Resources.