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Person
Carlyle, W. A. (William Arthur), 1862-1947
1862-1947
William Arthur Carlyle was born on March 31, 1862, in Hamilton, Ontario.
Carlyle, a grand-nephew of Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881), the Scottish writer, was the first British Columbian mineralogist and organizer of the Bureau of Mines. He studied mining engineering at McGill University where he also lectured in mining and metallurgy. In 1895, he was offered the position of the provincial mineralogist in British Columbia. In 1898, he resigned his position with the B.C. government to accept the position of engineer in charge of the Le Roi, Josie, No. 1 and other properties of the British American Mining Corporation at Rossland, B.C. That same year he became one of the founders of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. From the Rossland position, Carlyle went to Riotinto Mines in Spain as its Managing Director.
In 1891, he married Helen Muirhead Spier (1867-1953). He died on December 4, 1947, in Victoria, British Columbia.