H. Rush Spedden photograph collection
Collection
Identifier: P0836
Scope and Contents
The H. Rush Spedden photo collection consists of a stereograph and a panorama of the Western United States
Dates
- 1911-1920
Creator
- Spedden, Rush, 1916-2013 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
Conditions Governing Use
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.
Biographical Note
H. Rush Spedden was born in Colville, WA in 1916, Rush grew up in a west in transition from horses to cars. As a teenager he witnessed the impact of the Great Depression. To pay for college, he worked summers in a silver mine in the mountains of Idaho, advancing from an underground mucker to a mill operator. He graduated from the University of Washington in Mining Engineering and went on to receive a Master's degree at Montana School of Mines. In 1940 he was recruited to MIT to join Dr. A.M. Gaudin's new mineral processing group which became world-renowned for advancements in the science of mineral processing. In 1942, as part of the war effort, Rush was sent to Bolivia to boost production of tin. In 1944, he was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Army and sent to Europe in the Corps of Engineers. He was stationed in Bavaria with responsibilities for reinstituting coal production. In 1946, he returned to MIT as an Assistant Professor.
A skilled white water canoeist, Rush met his future bride, Betty (also a skilled canoeist) on an Appalachian Mountain Club trip in 1948. They were married in 1951.
Rush joined Union Carbide in New York in 1952, advancing to Director of Research. His duties took him to Africa and South America working on recovery of exotic metal used in batteries and nuclear devices. It was in this period that he received the first of his many patents for inventions in the field of metallurgy. In 1964 he was recruited to be Director of Research for Kennecott Copper's Western Mining Division in Salt Lake City, UT. Also in that year he was awarded an Honorary Professional Degree in Mineral Dressing by the Montana School of Mines. Rush was a life-long advocate of the Society of Mining Engineers of AIME starting as president of his student section to being named President of the Society of Mining Engineers in 1970. Rush also mentored many young engineers, encouraging them to join the mission to meet the growing need for efficient recovery and utilization of mineral resources. For his dedication to the advancement of mineral processing technology. Rush was honored with the Robert H. Richards award by AIME. Rush retired from Kennecott in 1977, but continued to consult in the field for many years after that.
Rush had a broad range of interests. He was always an avid historian and geologist, and a professor at heart. He could be counted on for absolutely fascinating impromptu lectures on a broad range of subjects. His family has fond memories of driving around the country learning of the flow of history both in geological and human terms. In 1972 he started tracing the pioneer trails through Utah, correcting many misconceptions through the use of science, great detective work and the latest technologies. The Bureau of Land Management asked Rush to mark the route of the Hastings Cutoff west of Salt Lake (the route taken by the ill-fated Donner party and by those heading west for the California gold rush). In later years he directed his attention to the trails near Fort Bridger. He was the author of numerous historical articles and he wrote the Hastings Cutoff section of Peter DeLafosse's 1994 book Trailing the Pioneers. Rush's work has also been cited by others in their publications. In 2011 at the age of 94, Rush was awarded the Oregon-California Trails Association's Merrill Mattes Award for Excellence in writing for his article published a year earlier titled "Lansford Hastings, Orson Pratt, Google Earth and GPS" in which Rush used modern technology to calculate the "instrument error" in Orson Pratt's sextant and then based on that and ground observation (in Rush's Jeep), he successfully identified a lost section of the trail the first Mormons took to Salt Lake. In another enthralling piece of detective work, Rush gives a compelling argument for the T.H. Jefferson of an early map of the Hasting's Cutoff being Thomas Hemings Jefferson, the son of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Rush has been a life-long skier. He told of skiing on barrel staves as a young boy. Rush and Betty went skiing at Mt. Tremblant in Canada for their honeymoon. Rush was a founder of the "Wild old Bunch" at Alta, a nationally known collection of older skiers. He coined the name when he produced a home movie of his friends skiing powder and put it to music. Many will remember his graceful powder skiing style and the fact that he continued to ski the powder into his 90's.
Biography taken from Salt Lake Tribune obituary. January 2, 2014
A skilled white water canoeist, Rush met his future bride, Betty (also a skilled canoeist) on an Appalachian Mountain Club trip in 1948. They were married in 1951.
Rush joined Union Carbide in New York in 1952, advancing to Director of Research. His duties took him to Africa and South America working on recovery of exotic metal used in batteries and nuclear devices. It was in this period that he received the first of his many patents for inventions in the field of metallurgy. In 1964 he was recruited to be Director of Research for Kennecott Copper's Western Mining Division in Salt Lake City, UT. Also in that year he was awarded an Honorary Professional Degree in Mineral Dressing by the Montana School of Mines. Rush was a life-long advocate of the Society of Mining Engineers of AIME starting as president of his student section to being named President of the Society of Mining Engineers in 1970. Rush also mentored many young engineers, encouraging them to join the mission to meet the growing need for efficient recovery and utilization of mineral resources. For his dedication to the advancement of mineral processing technology. Rush was honored with the Robert H. Richards award by AIME. Rush retired from Kennecott in 1977, but continued to consult in the field for many years after that.
Rush had a broad range of interests. He was always an avid historian and geologist, and a professor at heart. He could be counted on for absolutely fascinating impromptu lectures on a broad range of subjects. His family has fond memories of driving around the country learning of the flow of history both in geological and human terms. In 1972 he started tracing the pioneer trails through Utah, correcting many misconceptions through the use of science, great detective work and the latest technologies. The Bureau of Land Management asked Rush to mark the route of the Hastings Cutoff west of Salt Lake (the route taken by the ill-fated Donner party and by those heading west for the California gold rush). In later years he directed his attention to the trails near Fort Bridger. He was the author of numerous historical articles and he wrote the Hastings Cutoff section of Peter DeLafosse's 1994 book Trailing the Pioneers. Rush's work has also been cited by others in their publications. In 2011 at the age of 94, Rush was awarded the Oregon-California Trails Association's Merrill Mattes Award for Excellence in writing for his article published a year earlier titled "Lansford Hastings, Orson Pratt, Google Earth and GPS" in which Rush used modern technology to calculate the "instrument error" in Orson Pratt's sextant and then based on that and ground observation (in Rush's Jeep), he successfully identified a lost section of the trail the first Mormons took to Salt Lake. In another enthralling piece of detective work, Rush gives a compelling argument for the T.H. Jefferson of an early map of the Hasting's Cutoff being Thomas Hemings Jefferson, the son of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Rush has been a life-long skier. He told of skiing on barrel staves as a young boy. Rush and Betty went skiing at Mt. Tremblant in Canada for their honeymoon. Rush was a founder of the "Wild old Bunch" at Alta, a nationally known collection of older skiers. He coined the name when he produced a home movie of his friends skiing powder and put it to music. Many will remember his graceful powder skiing style and the fact that he continued to ski the powder into his 90's.
Biography taken from Salt Lake Tribune obituary. January 2, 2014
Extent
.2 Linear Feet (1 archives box) : 2 Photographic Prints
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The H. Rush Spedden photo collection consists of a stereograph and a panorama of the Western United States.
Arrangement
By folder and subject.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by H. Rush Spedden in 2000.
Processing Information
Processed by Photo Archives staff.
Creator
- Spedden, Rush, 1916-2013 (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the H. Rush Spedden photograph collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding aid created by Sara Davis.
- Date
- 2015
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository
Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu