Kern County CA Obituary Project Obituaries..... Smith, Stuart Ross March 27, 2005
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K T bluewolf@onemain.com April 3, 2005, 7:42 pm

The Bakersfield Californian 
Stuart Ross Smith
Oct. 4, 1921 - Mar. 27, 2005

Stuart Ross Smith, a well known petroleum geologist in California for over 
forty-six years has died. He was 83. 

Smith passed away March 27th in Bakersfield. He had been battling illness for 
almost ten years.

Sometimes known as Smitty, he was very prominent in oil exploration, 
especially at the Elk Hills Naval Petroleum Reserve (N.P.R.). His company, 
Formation Logging, evaluated the oil formations for over 200 wells in his 27 
years on the Hill. He logged over 400 wells from Brea, Huntington Beach, and 
Yorba Linda, in Southern California all the way north to the gas Country near 
Sacramento. His love of working in the field combined with his meticulous 
nature and attention to detail made his formation analysis some of the most 
accurate of its kind.

Stuart Smith, and his company, including his son, Wendell, logged the deepest 
well ever drilled in California at Elk Hills N. P. R. #1; Well 934-29R reached 
the total depth of 24,426 feet on August 4, 1987. 

A native of Centralia, Washington, he was the son of a teacher and a prominent 
labor attorney. He served in the Navy in World War II. He attended University 
of California, Berkeley where he received his Bachelors of Science degree in 
Micro Paleontology. After his 1951 graduation he began working in the oil 
industry and didnt retire until 1997.

The outspoken and musically inclined Smith was known for his jokes (sometimes 
bad ones) and playing the piano whenever and wherever one was available.

His beloved wife Audrey preceded his passing by eleven years. He is survived 
by his children, son, Reed and wife, Roxanne Smith, and their daughter, 
Alexis; his daughter, Christina Smith; his son, Wendell and wife, Rae; his 
son, Cameron and wife, Christine and their children, Lauren, Eric, and Neil.

He will be greatly missed by all that knew him.

The Meal on Wheels Program of the Richard Prado Senior Center was very kind to 
Stuart so in lieu flowers the family would like donations made to the Meals on 
Wheels program. 


Additional Comments:
Volunteer submission - No relation to deceased.

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