Harry Watson Smith (30 September 1886 – 24 June 1955) was an English colliery manager and

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er who played for

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

in 1912 and for

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

in 1920. Smith was born in Chesterfield,

and was educated at

Worksop College Worksop College (formerly St Cuthbert's College) is a British co-educational private school for both boarding and day pupils aged 11 to 18, in Worksop. It sits at the northern edge of Sherwood Forest, in Nottinghamshire, England. Founded by N ...

and

Sheffield University The University of Sheffield (informally Sheffield University or TUOS) is a public research university in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its history traces back to the foundation of Sheffield Medical School in 1828, Firth College in 1879 ...

. He became a Member of the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 110,000 member ...

, and a Member of the

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a Charitable organization, charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters ar ...

. He was manager at Ansley Hall Colliery, Warwickshire. Smith made his first-class cricket debut for Warwickshire in 1912, when he appeared in one match against

, in which he kept wicket and scored 15 runs in the lower order. Smith's second and final County match was for Derbyshire, in a match in the 1920 season against

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

Though he was dismissed cheaply in the first innings, he made a career-best 24 not out in the second. He was a right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper and played three innings in two first-class matches making 49 runs with a top score of 24 not out. Smith held positions as manager of Denaby Main Colliery and General Manager of Glass Houghton and

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the t ...

Collieries,

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and civil parish in the Cumberland (unitary authority), Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. It is a port on the north-west coast, and lies outside the Lake District National parks of England and Wales, National Park. ...

Colliery Co. Ltd. and of the Sheffield Coal Company Ltd. In 1936 he was appointed General Manager of the Hardwick Colliery Company and the Hardwick By-Product Company. He became deputy chairman and managing director of both Companies. He was a Director and Consultant to the Chislet Colliery, and deputy chairman and Collieries Advisor of the Lilleshall Company'. In 1942, he visited the US for the Government to investigate American mining methods. In 1945 he was a Member of the Technical Advisory Committee on Coal Mining to the

Ministry of Fuel and Power The Ministry of Power was a United Kingdom government ministry dealing with issues concerning energy. The Ministry of Power (then named Ministry of Fuel and Power) was created on 11 June 1942 from functions separated from the Board of Trade. ...

and was also a member of the Mechanisation Advisory Committee to the Ministry. He was a member of the executive committee of the British Coking Industry Association and other National Committees of the Coking Industry. In 1945 and 1946, he was President of the Midland Institute of Mining Engineers. After nationalisation he was Production Director for the East Midland Division of the National Coal Board. He was a Fellow of the

Geological Society of London The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe, with more than 12,000 Fellows. Fe ...

and a J.P. He lived at "The Cedars," Tibshelf, Derbyshire.Durham Mining Museum Who's Who
/ref> Smith died in

Ruthin Ruthin ( ; ) is a market town and community in Denbighshire, Wales, in the south of the Vale of Clwyd. The town, castle and St Peter's Square lie on a hill, skirted by villages such as Pwllglas and Rhewl. The name comes from the Welsh ''rhud ...

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...

at the age of 68.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Harry 1886 births 1955 deaths Derbyshire cricketers English cricketers Warwickshire cricketers Cricketers from Chesterfield, Derbyshire Wicket-keepers People educated at Worksop College 20th-century English sportsmen