David Wilson (barrister)
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David Wilson (26 December 1879 – 6 January 1965) was an
Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
,
King's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...
and company director. He was the owner of the
rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically desc ...
property Tocal Homestead at Tocal, New South Wales and a furniture maker of distinction.


Early life

Wilson was born in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, the first of four sons of William Joshua Wilson (1843–1899) and Jessie Elizabeth (née Shepherd). On his birth Wilson was a child of independent means as in 1865 his grandfather, Felix Wilson, had died and willed by entail Tocal to his unborn grandson. His younger brothers were
William Hardy Wilson William Hardy Wilson (14 February 1881 – 16 December 1955) was an Australian architect, artist and author. He "is regarded as one of the most outstanding architects of the twentieth century". Early years Wilson was born in Campbelltow ...
(1881–1955), Lindsay Wilson (born 1883–1959) and Robert Shepherd Wilson (1886–1954). He was educated at
Newington College Newington College is a multi-campus Independent school, independent Uniting Church in Australia, Uniting Church Single-sex education, single-sex and Mixed-sex education, co-educational Pre-school education, early learning, Primary school, primar ...
commencing in 1891 and sat and passed the Junior Examination in 1895 and the Senior in 1897. In both exams he was awarded the medal for best pass in the state in
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...
. In 1896 he won one of four Wigram Allen Scholarships, endowed by Sir
George Wigram Allen Sir George Wigram Allen (16 May 1824 – 23 July 1885) was an Australian politician and philanthropist. He was Speaker (politics), Speaker in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly 1875–1883. Allen was held in high esteem. As speaker he sho ...
. He was a
Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect' ...
in 1896 and 1897, a member of the 1st XI
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 ...
in the same years, and a member of the
rifle shooting Shooting sports is a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities involving proficiency tests of accuracy, precision and speed in shooting — the art of using ranged weapons, mainly small arms (firearms and airguns, in forms such ...
team in 1897. Wilson went up to the
University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...
in 1898 and graduated
B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
in 1901 and
M.A. A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
in 1903 and gained his
LL.B. A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...
degree in 1906. In 1907, while studying abroad, Wilson sold Tocal and decided to pursue a career in the law.


Residences

* ''Ellalong'', Holden Street,
Ashfield Ashfield may refer to: People * Ashfield (surname) Places Australia * Ashfield, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Municipality of Ashfield, a former local government area in Sydney ** Electoral district of Ashfield, a former electoral di ...
: the Wilson family lived at this home during his school years. * ''Llanthas'', 3 Emu Street, Burwood: following the death of William Joshua Wilson in 1899, his widow and children moved to Strathfield and David Wilson was married from here in 1906. Llanthes is still extant but after subdivision and a border change is now located at 25A Wonga Street, Strathfield. * ''Marburg'', 9 Jersey Road,
Strathfield Strathfield is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 12 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the Municipality of Strathfield. A sma ...
: Wilson and his new bride lived in Strathfield from the time of their marriage until moving to Bellevue Hill. Marburg has since been demolished. * ''Yandooya'', Cranbrook Road, Bellevue Hill: This house was built in 1912 to a design by the architectural firm of Manson and Pickering and the Wilsons moved there in 1919. It had extensive grounds running between Cranbrook Road and Cranbrook Lane. Wilson sold the property to
The Scots College The Scots College is an independent primary and secondary Day school, day and Boarding school, boarding school for boys, predominantly located in , an Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is affiliat ...
in 1943. It became a boarding facility, ''Royle House'', but was demolished in 1981. * ''The Astor'',
Macquarie Street, Sydney Macquarie Street is a street in the Sydney central business district, central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Street extends from Hyde Park, Sydney, Hyde Park at its southern end to the Sydney Opera House a ...
: In 1943 Wilson moved into the 1923 Chicago-inspired steel and concrete
apartment block A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdiction. ...
designed by the architects Donald Esplin and Stuart Mill Mould.


Marriage and family

On 10 April 1906, Wilson married Marcia, daughter of Alex Budge of ''Rathgael'',
Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...
. Their only daughter, Marcie Elizabeth Wilson (1907–1995), known as Betty, married
Warwick Oswald Fairfax Sir Warwick Oswald Fairfax (19 December 1901 – 14 January 1987) was an Australian businessman prominent in the arts as a philanthropist, journalist and playwright. He was a member of the wealthy Fairfax family of media proprietors. Biography ...
(1901–1987) in 1928 and had issue: Caroline Simpson (1930–2003) and
James Fairfax James Oswald Fairfax (27 March 1933 – 11 January 2017) was an Australian company director, philanthropist, and a member of the Fairfax family, an Australian family prominent in the newspaper publisher industry. Biography Fairfax was born in ...
(1933-2017). After divorcing Fairfax, Betty married Commandant Pierre Gilly in 1946 and had one son, Edward Gilly (1948–2005). Following her second divorce, Betty returned to being known as Betty Fairfax and, with her three children, remained close to David Wilson.


Legal career

Following graduation, Wilson was admitted to the Bar of New South Wales in 1906. He took
silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...
in 1946 after many years of distinguished equity practice in Sydney.


Company director

In 1935, Wilson was appointed a director of the Colonial Sugar Refining Company and remained on the board until 1953. He was a member of the New South Wales board of The Trustees Executors and Agency Company from 1947.


Furniture maker

At the age of 35, Wilson suffered from a mysterious and severe throat condition. His medical advisors told him not to speak for six months and to wrap a
handkerchief A handkerchief (; also called a hankie or, historically, a handkercher or a ) is a form of a kerchief or bandanna, typically a hemmed square of thin fabric which can be carried in the pocket or handbag for personal hygiene purposes such as w ...
over his mouth. To occupy himself during this period while not working, Wilson took to making furniture. The furniture made was to designs of his brother Hardy Wilson and many of the working drawings are held by the
National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...
. His throat recovered fully but he continued to make furniture having taken lessons from a
carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...
and found a new hobby. Twenty pieces of his furniture were made between 1914 and 1925, and are all held in private family collections or by
National Trust of Australia The National Trust of Australia, officially the Australian Council of National Trusts (ACNT), is the Australian national peak body for community-based, non-government non-profit organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's Ind ...
in NSW. The June 1926 issue of
Art in Australia ''Art in Australia'' was an Australian art magazine that was published between 1916 and 1942. Founding ''Art in Australia,'' was first issued in 1916. It was edited by Sydney Ure Smith, graphic artist and director of the advertising agency, ...
illustrates five examples of his work and nine photographs and measurements are held by the National Library.National Library of Australia – Card table for David Wilson, ca. 1925
Retrieved 22 August 2012
Wilson, and his brother, decided that all pieces would be made in solid Australian timbers and not to use veneers.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, David 1879 births 1965 deaths People educated at Newington College Australian barristers Australian King's Counsel 20th-century King's Counsel University of Sydney alumni Strathfield, New South Wales