L. D. Ricketts
Louis Davidson Ricketts | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Elkton, Maryland, U.S. |
| Died | March 4, 1940 (aged 80) |
| Occupation(s) | Economic geologist, metallurgist, mining engineer, banker |
| Known for | Advancement of copper mining operations in Arizona and Sonora, Mexico; pioneering metallurgical techniques; leadership in mining industry |
Louis Davidson Ricketts (December 19, 1859 – March 4, 1940) was an American expert in economic geology, metallurgy, mining engineering, and banking, recognized for his pioneering role in the advancement of copper mining operations across Arizona and Sonora, Mexico.
Early career
Born on December 19, 1859, in Elkton, Maryland, Ricketts completed both his B.Sc. (1881) and D.Sc. (1883) degrees at Princeton University, focusing on Chemistry and Economic Geology. His professional journey began in Colorado, where he worked as a mine surveyor and assayer in Leadville, progressed to foreman near Silverton, and later served as a mining geology consultant and expert witness in Leadville and Aspen. Between 1887 and 1890, he held the position of Geologist for the Wyoming Territory. In 1890, Dr. James Douglas from Phelps Dodge recruited him to spearhead mining development efforts in the Southwestern border regions.
Ricketts’ initial ventures were marked by challenges rather than triumphs. In 1891, under Douglas’s direction, he became manager of the Commercial Mining Company (a Phelps Dodge subsidiary) tasked with launching the Southwest's inaugural Hunt-Douglas leaching facility at Copper Basin near Prescott; however, the plant was destroyed by fire, representing an early unsuccessful attempt at hydrometallurgical processing. The company also took control of claims adjacent to the United Verde mine in Jerome, but Ricketts was unable to locate commercially viable ore there or at various Globe-area sites. In 1893, after investing in a silver mine at Silverton and constructing a mill, he faced bankruptcy—an experience that instilled caution about committing substantial capital before confirming adequate ore reserves. By the mid-1890s, Douglas reinstated Ricketts and assigned him to northern Sonora, Mexico, to investigate copper prospects.
Nacozari, Sonora, Mexico and Morenci, Arizona with PD
In 1897, Ricketts recommended that Phelps Dodge acquire the modest Pilares mine located in northern Sonora from the Guggenheim family. Entrusted with redeveloping this site, he became a trailblazer in large-scale extraction of a porphyry copper deposit. As the inaugural manager of The Moctezuma Copper Company, Ricketts directed the establishment of a state-of-the-art mine complex including a concentrator, smelter, and company town connected by railroad infrastructure. This facility incorporated steel-frame architecture and electric power systems. By 1901, Pilares had evolved into a profitable operation producing copper ore with less than 3% copper content—a record low at that time—solidifying Ricketts’s reputation as a foremost metallurgist and mining executive.
Concurrently, he engineered a modern concentrator for the Detroit Copper Mining Company of Arizona (also under Phelps Dodge control) at Morenci, Arizona, while investing in the Valley National Bank, which was among Arizona’s earliest major financial institutions. Ricketts maintained an executive role at Valley Bank throughout his life.
Preeminent consultant metallurgist
Beginning in 1901, Ricketts established himself as a consulting engineer widely respected for designing critical metallurgical installations during the early copper industry surge in the twentieth century. Over the following fifteen years, he was responsible for planning smelters and concentrators at significant locations such as Old Dominion (Globe, Arizona), Copper Queen (Douglas and Bisbee), Miami, Cananea, and Clifton—all predominantly controlled by Phelps Dodge—as well as a coal washing facility at Dawson, New Mexico. Additionally, he served as president and general manager overseeing Anaconda’s Cananea operations where he modernized metallurgical plants. Since 1907, mines in Arizona have contributed more than half of U.S. copper production, much of which was processed through mills designed by Ricketts. In recognition of his pivotal role in Arizona’s mineral industry growth, the state governor honored him in 1915 as its "most distinguished citizen."
Ricketts’ most significant technological advances occurred during the 1910s. While consulting for Anaconda’s Inspiration copper mine and International smelter in Miami, Arizona (1912–1915), he introduced the first large-scale froth flotation plant applied to copper ore processing. Partnering with John Campbell Greenway, he developed innovative copper-leaching techniques combined with electrolytic refining for ore sourced from the New Cornelia mine near Ajo, Arizona (1911–1916). This leaching method—his most profitable innovation—was widely adopted including at Inspiration and became foundational for all contemporary solvent extraction processes used globally in copper mining. Subsequent projects extended to California oil ventures and Chilean mines; however, his enduring legacy remains firmly rooted in metallurgical advancements.
Recognitions
In 1916, Ricketts was chosen to lead the American Institute of Mining Engineers as its president. He was honored with the gold medal by the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy in Great Britain in 1910. The University of Arizona conferred upon him an L.L.D. degree in 1916, followed by a doctor of engineering from Princeton University in 1925. He held trustee positions at both Princeton and Caltech, to which he also contributed financially. The American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineers awarded him the James Douglas gold medal in 1940.
Personal
Following a severe illness in 1917, Ricketts returned to consulting work but did not take on any significant new ventures. He retired to Pasadena, California, where he passed away in 1940. At the time of his death, he was serving as chairman of Valley National Bank in Phoenix and was a board member of Phelps Dodge.
Ricketts married Kate Bruce Greenway in 1916; she was the widow of his partner’s brother. The couple had no children. His brother, Palmer C. Ricketts, served as president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
See also
References
- "Dr. Louis D. Ricketts" in Forrest R. Rickard, 1996, The Development of Ajo, Arizona (Ajo, Arizona, self-published), LC 96-92729