People/scientist

Robert Wardrop Forrest

Robert Wardrop Forrest, scientist, from United Kingdom. Linked to gold.

The lucky break

A Glasgow doctor who, with his brother William and John MacArthur, acquired refractory gold ore in 1885 and began the experiments that led to the cyanide process.1

Legacy

The brothers' research syndicate was backed by George Morton. The MacArthur-Forrest process is named partly for them.1

Story cards

Timeline

  1. 1887Cyanide process for gold developed in Scotland2
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Where next

People

FamilyWilliam ForrestTwo Glasgow doctor brothers behind the cyanide process.1Partner ofJohn Stewart MacArthurA chemist and two doctors who changed gold recovery.1

Events

DiscoveredCyanide process for gold developed in ScotlandA Glasgow doctor who helped crack refractory gold ore.1

Sources

  1. MacArthur papers: John Stewart MacArthur Balliol College Archives, Oxford
  2. Cyanide hazards to plants and animals from gold mining and related water issues (publication page) US Geological Survey

Pictures on this page: Jsmacarthur-X-007r.jpg, Elliott & Fry according to verso jsmacarthur-X-007v on flickr (Public domain).

From the Prospector Trails mining history dataset: each fact links to the source it was checked against. Figures are as the source gives them, in the money of their day. Not investment advice.

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Pictures: Pangkalpinang. Mijn 3b. Een reeks koelies bezig met het transporteeren van grond, Europeana (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Timna in de Negevwoestijn; rotspartij "de zuilen van Salomo", Poll, Willem van de / Europeana (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Mijnramp Bois du Caizier, Marcinelle, België. Schacht, Rossem, Wim van / Anefo / Europeana (Public Domain Mark 1.0); NASA's ASTER Shows Brazilian City After Dam Disaster, NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Space Systems, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team (Public domain (NASA media, no copyright)).