Cornelius Philip Finn  (17th June 1880 - 21st May 1961)

Cornelius Philip Finn was educated at the King's School, Pontefract, and the Yorkshire College of Victoria University, from where he obtained his B.Sc. degree in chemistry in 1901. He then went to Sheffield University to do post-graduate work on metallography.

His first post was as Private Assistant to Professor Sir James Dobbie at the University College of North Wales at Bangor. Following this, he was appointed Chemist in charge of the laboratories of the Farnley Iron Company at Leeds, under Mr (later Professor) J. W. Cobb. In 1908 he became Chemist to the South Kirkby, Featherstone, and Hemsworth collieries and later, in 1912, he took over as Manager of the coke oven plant at Hemsworth. He was one of the group of coke-oven managers in the Sheffield area who met on 12 June, 1915, to consider the formation of the Coke Oven Managers' Association. He was President of the Association in 1923-24.

In 1920, he became Manager of the coke-oven, washery and brickworks departments at Manvers Main and remained there until 1934. He then went to be Manager of the Oldbury Works of Midland Tar Distillers for two years. After this he became Representative for the Lecocq Coke Oven Company in England. In 1939 he became Manager and shortly afterwards General Manager of the Hemsworth and United Kingdom Coke Oven Company's new plant at Hemsworth, where he remained until his retirement at the end of 1950.

In his early twenties he had contracted tuberculosis and was told he would be fortunate to live to the age of 30. He recovered his health by a stay of three months in the Canary Islands, losing a lung in the process.

He was married in 1931 to Gladys Eddy, a graduate of Sheffield University of half his age, whom he met because they were both doing similar research work. They had five children, all of whom later attended universities.

He was a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chemistry (now the Royal Society of Chemistry), a Fellow of the Institute of Fuel, a Member (which would now be Fellow) of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, a Member of the Institution of Gas Engineers, and a Life Member of the Society of Chemical Industry. He became an Honorary Member of both the Institution of Chemical Engineers and the Coke Oven Managers Association on his retirement.