New edition: 2 volumes, 359 + 353 pages, photogravure frontispiece portrait of Williams in volume I and colour frontispiece of diamonds in volume 2, 15 maps - 4 double page, 1 double page coloured plan of Kimberley mine in 1877 and 1 large folding map at the end of volume 2, 26 photogravures and numerous other plates and illustrations some coloured, marbled end papers, uncut fore edge with light foxing, top edge gilt, full brown leather bindings with a gilt vignette on the upper cover and titled gilt with decoration on the spines, in the original glassine paper dust covers, a fine set.
The limitation reads: There have been prepared One thousand copies of the Author’s edition of the Diamond Mines of South Africa of which this set consisting of 2 volumes is no 367
S2A3 Biographical Database of Southern African Science (https://www.s2a3.org.za/bio/Biograph_final.php?serial=3141)
Williams, Mr Gardner Fred (mining engineering)
Born: 14 March 1842, Saginaw, Michigan, United States.
Died: 22 August 1922, San Francisco, United States.
'Gardner Fred Williams, American mining engineer, was the eldest son of Alpheus Fuller Williams and his wife Ann K. Simpson. After obtaining the degree Bachelor of Arts (BA) at the College of California (precursor of the University of California) in 1865, he qualified as a mining engineer at the Bergakademie (Mining Academy) at Freiburg, Germany, in 1868. Upon returning to the United States he continued his studies at the University of California and obtained the degree Master of Arts (MA). In 1870 he was appointed assistant assayer in the United States Mint at San Francisco, but from 1871 he worked as mill superintendent at Pioche, Nevada, for more than three years and then at Silver Reef, Utah. From 1875 to 1880 he was consultant for a New York exploration company and from 1880-1883 visited many mining regions in the western United States. In October 1871 he married Fanny M. Locke, with whom he had three surviving daughters and a son. The latter, named Alpheus Fuller Williams* like his grandfather, followed in his father's footsteps.
'In 1884 Williams was appointed manager of the gold mines of the Transvaal Gold Exploration and Land Company at Pilgrim's Rest, in the South African Republic (Transvaal), but the venture was unsuccessful. He resigned this post in August the next year and returned to California, travelling on the same ship as the British imperialist and financier Cecil J. Rhodes. When Williams returned to South Africa in 1886 as the representative of an American mining concern, Rhodes asked him to become general manager of the De Beers Mining Company in Kimberley. He assumed duty on 1 May 1887 and assisted Rhodes in the amalgamation of the diamond mines and the formation of the De Beers Consolidated Mining Company in March 1888. A paper by him on "The diamond mines of South Africa" was published in the Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers in 1887. He held his post as mining engineer and general manager of the company until his retirement in 1905. During this period he was responsible for introducing proper shaft sinking methods and an excellent system for training apprentices. In 1895 he presented a collection of rocks from the Kimberley area and De Beers mines to the South African Museum in Cape Town.
'Williams was a strong supporter of the South African School of Mines, established by the South African College, Cape Town, which provided practical training in Kimberley from 1896 to 1903. He was chairman of its management committee in Kimberley during this entire period and in 1898 and 1899 was an examiner in the subject mining for the University of the Cape of Good Hope (which set the examinations for the SA School of Mines). In 1902 he published an authoritative work, The diamond mines of South Africa (New York, 1902, 681p; revised and enlarged ed., 2 vols, 1905). In this book he provided a full description of the mines and the principal diamonds recovered from them, the practice of underground mining, mining machinery, and the cutting and polishing of stones. Other publications by him included a paper on "The genesis of the diamond" in the Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers (1904); a chapter on "The diamond mines of Kimberley" (mainly their geology) in Science in South Africa, a book published in preparation for the joint meeting of the British and South African Associations for the Advancement of Science in 1905; and a paper on "Mining methods at Kimberley" in Mining Magazine (1915).
'Williams was a member of the South African Association of Engineers and Architects during the late eighteen-nineties. In 1902 he became a foundation member of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science, serving as joint vice-president from its inception and as president when the association held its fourth annual congress in Kimberley in 1906. In 1905 he became a member also of the British Association for the Advancement of Science.
'In 1905 the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences awarded him their silver medal. He retired at the end of that year and returned to the United States, settling in Washington, DC. There he presented a collection of rocks illustrating the occurrence of diamonds in South Africa to the United States National Museum. In 1910 an honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD) degree was conferred upon him by the University of California. At that time he still served on the council of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science. He moved to San Francisco in 1914.'
Mendelssohn (Sidney) South African Bibliography, Volume 2, page 614: 'The author of this historical and practical account of the diamond industry, and especially of the South African diamond mines, was for many years the general manager of the De Beers Consolidated Mines, a gigantic undertaking founded by the late Cecil John Rhodes. The volume contains a full description of the mines with the fullest details respecting their working.
'Mr Gardner Williams initiated the present system of work pursued in all underground diamond mines, and the work is replete with valuable information, and is the standard authority on all matters connected with diamonds and diamond-mining. In addition to this, the work contains an account of the celebrated diamonds discovered in bygone times, a description of the discovery of the Kimberley group of mines and the rise of the surrounding townships, chapters on the formation of the diamond, the methods of cutting and polishing the jewels, a description of the early and modern diamond-mining machinery, and an Appendix containing an account of Kimberley during the South African War. The volume is elaborately illustrated and many of the engravings reproduce ancient maps and charts and photographs of the greatest interest and rarity in connection with the diamond fields.'
- Overall Condition: Very good
- Size: 8vo (260 x180mm)
