Irving Turner

Irving Lawrence Turner passed away on August 31, 2018 in Golden CO. He was 88. Larry was born in Chicago IL, the elder of Irving and Irene Turner’s two sons. He met and married Louise Miller in Oak Lawn IL. Over the course of their 57-year marriage, Larry and Louise lived in Hawaii, Illinois, Tennessee, Missouri, Washington, and Colorado, where they eventually settled in the Douglas Mountain area of Gilpin County. He is survived by his three children, Larry, Tracy and Mike; four grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and his brother Don Turner of Florida. He served in the U.S. Navy as an Aerographer’s Mate 2nd Class, providing synoptic meteorology analysis and forecasting for the Utility Squadron at NAS Barber’s Point on O’ahu. Following his honorable discharge from the Navy, Larry worked as a Radiation Safety Research Technician at Argonne National Laboratory for two years; earned a B.A. in geology (physics minor) from Southern Illinois University in 1958; and then earned an M.S. in geology from the University of Tennessee – Knoxville in 1960. Larry began his professional career in 1960 with St. Joseph Lead Company, initially as Mine Geologist and then Division Geologist for several operating mines in the Missouri “Lead Belt”, and later as Exploration Geologist – Southeast Missouri Division. In 1969, he joined Vanguard Exploration in Spokane WA as Senior Geologist responsible for surface and underground exploration of the Metaline District of northeast Washington and for geologic mapping of the Precambrian Belt in Idaho and Montana. He collaborated with Vancouver-based colleagues (Vangulf) to explore the Salmo Mining District of southeast British Columbia. After Vanguard disbanded in 1972, Larry was hired by NL Industries in Golden CO as Special Projects Geologist, most notably managing NL’s Bayhorse fluorspar– base metal Mining District property in central Idaho. In 1976, he joined Texasgulf Minerals and Metals, initially serving as Manager of coal and potash exploration, then as Manager of North American base metals exploration, and finally as Vice President – Exploration, with responsibility for projects in North America, Ireland and Spain. Following his retirement from Texasgulf in 1986, Larry established Douglas Mountain Exploration and worked as a geological consultant for a decade, primarily focused on the Illinois–Kentucky fluorspar–base metal Mining District (Hicks Dome). For many years after, he continued to apply his geological skills to mineral exploration ventures in Arizona and Nevada with son Larry. Throughout his life, Larry was physically active. As a young man, he competed in wrestling and football—activities that were followed by brief experiments in dance (modern and hula) and longer-term athletic pursuits, in particular, swimming, canoeing, hiking, running, cross-country skiing, and cycling. He remained physically active well into his 80s—tending to his trout pond and 94-acre forest, roaming his Douglas Mountain neighborhood on foot or mountain bike, and (after hip-replacement surgery) exploring the Colorado Front Range Trail network on his recumbent trike.