John Saxton died at Tideswell, near Buxton, Derbyshire, on February 17th, 1927, at the age of 50.
He received his technical education at Barnsley Technical School and University College, Sheffield, and in 1899 was appointed underground manager at the Wharncliffe ganister and clay mines, Deepcar, and afterwards at two collieries.
During 1903-4 he prospected the Labuk district of British North Borneo. A further two years were spent in England as manager of the Wilfley Company’s testing works in London, and in 1907 he went to India as manager of the Mysore Chromium Co., Ltd., and during a period of nearly three years also reported on various Indian mines. In 1909 he returned to the Wilfley Company for about a year, before proceeding to West Africa, where he was manager of the Eastern Akim Mine, and examined other properties.
A brief visit to England in 1911 was occupied with further work for the Wilfley Company and an examination of a coal-mine in the Barnsley district. In 1912 he went to North Queensland as chief engineer on a wolfram property owned abroad, and in the same year be returned to West Africa as manager of the Asiakwa Alluvial Syndicate, Ltd. In 1914 he returned to England and henceforth was associated with collieries and other mines in the Sheffield district.
Mr. Saxton was elected an Associate of the Institution in 1909.
Vol. 38, Trans I.M.M., 1928-29, p.489
