Ralph P. Clarkson

Professor of Engineering, Acadia University, Consulting Engineer, Engineering Correspondent of the “Rural New-Yorker”

Ralph P. Clarkson graduated from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute with a degree in Electrical Engineering, and what would now be considered a minor in Mechanical Engineering. He then spent one year teaching at the University of Vermont before becoming the Assistant Examiner for the U. S. Patent Office, as well as the electrical engineering expert for the United States. 1 Eventually admitted to the bar as a registered patent attorney, Clarkson was widely published in such journals as Scientific American, Electrical World, American Machinist, Horseless Age, Automobile Topics, and The Independent of New York. Clarkson was also involved in the development of experimental machinery for various organizations, but in 1912, he left the U. S. in order to come to Wolfville, N. S. and accept a position as the Ivan Curry Professor of Engineering at Acadia University – a position that he held until 1917.2