William Frederick Rowden
William Frederick Rowden (1897-1949) of Climax Molybdenum Co
1948/49 Obituary [1]
WILLIAM FREDERICK ROWDEN. The death occurred at Hatch End, Middlesex, on 17 March 1949, after a long illness, of Mr. W. F. Rowden, the well-known authority on the development of alloy steels.
Born on 30 May 1897, Mr. Rowden spent his early days at the Openshaw Works of Messrs. Sir W. G. Armstrong Whitworth and Co., Ltd.
In 1930 he joined High Speed Alloys, Ltd., Widnes, as technical adviser, and in this capacity he maintained contact with almost all the metallurgists of the country who were concerned with the use of alloy elements for steelmaking.
In April 1937 he joined the staff of the Development and Research Department of The Mond Nickel Co., Ltd.
He left Mond Nickel at the end of 1938 to head the European force of the Climax Molybdenum Company, becoming a director of Climax Molybdenum Company of Europe, Ltd.
During the war he rendered valuable service as a metallurgical adviser to the Department of Tank Design, Ministry of Supply. He maintained a close liaison with American practice, and made frequent journeys to the U.S.A., where he had many friends. He took a prominent part in the work of scientific and technical associations; in addition to his membership of the Institute of Metals, which he joined in 1945,
Mr. Rowden was a member of the Iron and Steel Institute, the Institute of British Foundrymen, the Institute of Welding, the Manchester Association of Engineers, and the Manchester Metallurgical Society.
1949 Obituary [2]