T. S. Ary

T. S. Ary
Born	Template:Birth date Eldorado, Illinois, U.S.
Died	April 26, 2009(2009-04-26) (aged 84) Arlington, Virginia, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Mining engineer, government official
Years active	1951–1993
Known for	18th Director of the U.S. Bureau of Mines

T. S. Ary (March 30, 1925 – April 26, 2009) held the position of the 18th Director at the U.S. Bureau of Mines.

Early life

Ary was born in Eldorado, Illinois and grew up in Evansville. He completed his early education locally before obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in mining geology from Stanford University in 1951. During his time at Stanford, he actively participated in various sports and undertook graduate coursework in mineral law, land management, international affairs, and business.

Military career

In 1943, Ary entered the U.S. Navy through the V-5 Aviation Cadet Program and served as a pilot during World War II. He was honorably discharged from active duty in 1947 but continued his commitment by serving in the Navy Reserve until 1959.

Mining career

Ary began his mining profession in 1951 with Anaconda Copper located in Butte, Montana, where he worked as a shift boss and assistant supervisor at the Butte Hill mines before transitioning to the company’s geology department. By 1953, he advanced to mining engineer and superintendent at a vanadium mine operated by Union Carbide in Rifle, Colorado. In 1967, Ary was appointed vice president of Union Carbide Exploration Corporation based in New York City, a role he maintained until 1975. From 1975 through 1980, he served as vice president of exploration and director of development at Utah International, Inc., headquartered in San Francisco, California.

In 1980, Ary took on the presidency of the Minerals Exploration Division at Kerr-McGee Corporation in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, where he managed worldwide exploration efforts for hard minerals and coal until 1988.

Ary played an influential role in shaping national mineral policies by participating on several advisory bodies including the National Strategic Materials and Minerals Program Advisory Committee for the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, the U.S. Department Task Force related to the United Nations Law of the Sea Convention, and committees advising the U.S. Department of Commerce. He also led significant industry organizations such as chairing the Minerals Advisory Committee of the American Mining Congress and heading the Natural Resources Committee within the National Association of Manufacturers. Additionally, he held prominent positions within professional engineering and mining associations.

U.S. Bureau of Mines

President Ronald Reagan nominated Ary as Director of the U.S. Bureau of Mines, where he began his tenure on March 31, 1988. He served throughout both Reagan’s and George H. W. Bush’s administrations. During his directorship, the Bureau made strides in developing technologies including self-rescue breathing apparatuses, specialty metal production techniques, constructed wetlands for environmental remediation, and bacterial methods to eliminate arsenic and cyanide from wastewater streams. Ary concluded his service at the onset of President Clinton’s administration in January 1993.

Personal life

Ary shared 64 years of marriage with his first wife, Martha, and together they had a son named David. Subsequently, he married Temple.

Death

On April 26, 2009, Ary passed away at his residence in Arlington, Virginia. His final resting place is at Mount Olivet United Methodist Church Cemetery.

Awards

In 1991, Ary was honored with the Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration President's Citation, followed by the AIME Robert Earl McConnell Award in 1993. He was also inducted into the National Mining Hall of Fame posthumously in 2015.