Haultain, Herbert Edward Terrick

• H.E.T. Haultain

Herbert Edward Terrick Haultain (1869-1961) was a mining engineer, inventor, and professor at the University of Toronto. He received a degree in civil engineering from U of T in 1889, after which he worked for several mining companies until returning to the University in 1909 as a professor of mining engineering. He held this position for 30 years before stepping back from teaching to focus on research.

During Haultain’s tenure as professor, he initiated the Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer, requesting author Rudyard Kipling to compose the text. The ceremony was first held in 1925 and has since spread to be used at universities throughout Canada.

Haultain was also an advocate for public well-being initiatives, such as occupational therapy for injured soldiers returning from World War I. He established the first occupational therapy program at the University of Toronto in 1918 - a ward aide course held in the Mining Building - which would become the foundation for modern occupational therapy studies at the University. The six-week course would eventually develop into a two-year long diploma run by the Department of Soldiers’ Civil Reestablishment by 1926, then a full degree offered by the Faculty of Science by 1974. Similarly, he co-founded the Technical Service Council in 1927 out of an interest in the Canadian economy. The Council aimed to combat the loss of Canadian engineering graduates to foreign industries, especially to the United States.

Around 1937, Haultain invented the Infrasizer and the Superpanner. These devices were used to separate ores in mining laboratories, functioning as advancements from traditional gold panning. By the 1940s, the Infrasizer in particular saw success in mine operations around the world. His contributions to the process of milling ore were recognized with the Randolph Bruce gold medal, awarded by the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, and in 1994, he was inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame.

Enros, Philip C. “The Technical Service Council’s Origins: A ‘Patriotic Experiment’ in Selling Engineers.” Journal of Canadian Studies, vol. 24, iss. 4, 1989, pp. 87-106.

Rose, Phyllis. “Herbert Edward Terrick Haultain.” Canadian Encyclopedia, English ed., 2019.

“Celebrating 106 years of occupational therapy at the University of Toronto.” University of Toronto, Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy.

Haultain, H.E.T. The Infrasizer: The Story of a Struggle and a Mystery. University of Toronto Press, 2nd ed., 1961.

“Professor Herbert Haultain,” The Canadian Mining Hall of Fame.