Walter Russell Hall (22 February 1831 – 13 October 1911) was an Australian businessman and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

Biography

Hall was born in

Kington, Herefordshire Kington is a market town and civil parish in Herefordshire, England. The parish had a population of 3,240. Geography Kington is from the border with Wales, and lies on the western side of Offa's Dyke. The town is in the shadow of Hergest Rid ...

, England, eldest son of Walter Hall, glover (later a miller), and his wife Elizabeth Carleton, ''née'' Skarratt. He was educated in Kington and Taunton,

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 ...

. Hall arrived 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 ...

on 14 February 1852 with his two brothers, Thomas Skarratt Hall and James Wesley Hall with little money. Hall was employed for a short time by David Jones and then prospected for gold in Victoria with meagre success. From 1857 he was a major investor and administrator of the Australian

stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...

company

Cobb & Co Cobb & Co was the name used by several independent Australian coach businesses. The first company to use 'Cobb & Co' was established in 1853 by American Freeman Cobb and his partners. The name grew to great prominence in the late 19th century, ...

. He was also an original shareholder and director of Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company, incorporated in 1886. Other directorships included the

Mercantile Mutual The Mercantile Mutual Insurance Company was an Australian insurance and financial services company. It was established in 1878, and lasted until 2001, when it became part of ING Australia. The insurance portion of the business was later sold to A ...

, and the Sydney Meat Preserving Co. Ltd. Hall married

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

born Eliza Rowdon Kirk in 1874. They had no children. He died at their home in

Potts Point Potts Point is a small and densely populated suburb in inner-city Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Potts Point is located east of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Local government in Australia, local government area o ...

, Sydney, in October 1911.

Legacy

Hall's widow Eliza founded The Walter and Eliza Hall Trust that led to the establishment of the

Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research Walter may refer to: People and fictional characters * Walter (name), including a list of people and fictional and mythical characters with the given name or surname * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1 ...

, using funds earned from Hall's business interests to establish the Trust. The locality of Walterhall beside the

Mount Morgan Mine Mount Morgan Mine was a copper, gold and silver mine in Queensland, Australia. Mining began at Mount Morgan, Queensland, Mount Morgan in 1882 and continued until 1981. Over its lifespan, the mine yielded approximately of gold, of silver and ...

Central Queensland Central Queensland is an imprecisely-defined geographical division of Queensland ( a state in Australia) that centres on the eastern coast, around the Tropic of Capricorn. Its major regional centre is Rockhampton. The region extends from the Cap ...

was named after him.

References

1831 births 1911 deaths People from Kington, Herefordshire 19th-century Australian businesspeople Burials at Melbourne General Cemetery {{Australia-business-bio-stub