William Hill Irvine GCMG (1858 - 1943)

Born 6 Jul 1858 in Newry, County Down, Éire

Ancestors

Husband of Agnes Somerville (Wanliss) Irvine — married 17 Sep 1891 in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia

Descendants

Died 20 Aug 1943 at age 85 in Toorak, Victoria, Australia

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Preceded by Alexander James Peacock

William Hill Irvine 21st Premier of Victoria 10 June 1902-16 February 1904

Succeeded by Thomas Bent

Biography

William Irvine GCMG is Notable.

William Irvine GCMG was born in Ireland.

This profile is part of the Irvine Name Study.

William Hill Irvine was born on July 6, 1858 in Newry, County Down, Ireland, son of Hill Irvine (~1808–1878) and Margaret Mitchel (~1817–1904).^[1]

The ship Sobraon set sail from London, England on 29 September 1879 and Plymouth on 2 October with the IRVINE family among the passengers and arrived at Hobson's Bay, Colony of Victoria on 18 December 1879^[2][3]. The IRVINE family (all listed as single people) consisted of widowed mother, Margaret (age 57) and her children, John (29), Mary (25), Fanny (24) and William (listed as M H, 21).

William (33) married Agnes Somerville Wanliss (23) (born on November 16, 1867 in Ballarat, Victoria; daughter of Thomas Drummond Wanliss and Eliza (Henderson) Wanliss) on September 17, 1891 in Ballarat, Victoria.^[4]

Their children were:

• Beatrice Wanliss Irvine (1899–1989)
• William Mitchell Wanliss Irvine (1901–1975)
• Agnes Somerville Wanliss Irvine (1903–1996)

William died on August 20, 1943 in Toorak, Victoria, Australia, aged 85.^[5] He was buried in Eltham Cemetery, Eltham, Nillumbik Shire, Victoria. ^[1][6]

Obituary 21 Aug 1943^[7]

‘’’DEATH OF SIR WILLIAM IRVINE. Long Career of Public Service.’’’

Sir William Hill Irvine, K.C.M.G., K.C., former Lieutenant-Governor, Federal Attorney-General, Premier of Victoria, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, who died at his home in Toorak early yesterday morning, was one of the most eminent and widely respected men who have ever graced the public life of this State and the Commonwealth. He was 85. There will be a State funeral on Monday.

Upon Sir William Irvine's retirement the King commanded that there should be conveyed to him an expression of His Majesty's appreciation of his services.

Sir William Irvine was born at Newry County Down, Ireland, on July 6, 1858. One of his townsmen was Lord Russell of Killowen, a former Chief Justice of England. After the death of his father, who suffered in the historic failure of the Irish linen trade, young Irvine came with the family to Victoria in 1879. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, where he took his arts degree, and in Melbourne he read law with the late Mr Justice Hodges. At Melbourne University he took his LLB degree and won the Law Scholarship. Prior to that he had taught at Geelong College. He was admitted to the Victorian Bar on July 6, 1884 and rapidly established a wide practice. In 1894 he began his political career by winning Lowan seat in the Victorian Legislative Assembly. He became Attorney-General in the McLean Ministry in 1899, and later was leader of the Opposition to the (Lafayette)

Ministry led by Sir Alexander Peacock from 1901 until the following year. Upon the defeat of the Peacock Ministry in 1902 Sir William Irvine became Premier, and during his term had the task of guiding the State through critical and lean years which followed the depression caused by drought conditions, although the effects of the commercial crash of the early nineties were still being felt in addition. The sensational but short lived railway strike of 1903 occurred during his Premiership. In 1906 he withdrew from State politics to enter the Federal Parliament as member for Flinders, which he represented continuously until 1918, when he retired to take his place on the Supreme Court Bench.

He reached Ministerial rank in the Federal Parliament in 1913 as Attorney-General in the Cook Ministry. Upon the death of Sir John Madden in 1918 Sir William Irvine was appointed Chief Justice, a position from which he retired in 1935. His long service on the Supreme Court Bench was frequently broken by periods in which, as Lieutenant Governor, he assumed office in the absence of the Governor. Ill health caused him to retire from public life at the beginning of 1936.

Sir William Irvine was one of Victoria's pioneer motorists, and was a member of the RACV for 34 years, joining in Aug, 1909. He was a patron of the club from 1918 until his death.

Lady Irvine, whom Sir William Irvine married in 1891, is a daughter of the late Mr T. D. Wanliss M.L.C, of Ballarat. There is one son, Lt-Col William Irvine, who is a member of the Legal Corps, AIF, and there are 2 daughters, Mrs James Morrison, of Eltham, and Mrs Ian Hayward, of Adelaide.

BODY TO LIE IN STATE

On Monday Sir William Irvine's body will lie in state at the Scots Church from 11am to 12.30pm. At 2.30pm a service will be conducted at Scots Church, Melbourne, by Rev J. Golder Burns. The address will be given by Very Rev Dr John McKenzie, and at 3 p.m., the funeral will leave for Eltham Cemetery, where a private service will be held. It is the desire of the family that no floral tributes be sent. Mr Dunstan, Premier, said yesterday that in the deep sorrow felt at the passing of Sir William Irvine there was, at the same time, the remembrance that not only this State, but the whole Commonwealth, had benefited greatly through the splendid work performed by this great Australian.

Sir Frederick Mann, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, said that this country had been deprived of a great and noble citizen. He had earned the deep esteem and affection of his fellow judges.

Mr Wilbur Ham, KC, on behalf of the Victorian Bar, said that he wished to express his sincere tribute to the memory of Sir William Irvine. Sir William had been a great, just, and courteous judge.

Mr R. G. Menzies, KC, said that the death of Sir William Irvine was a great loss to Australia. He doubted very much whether his record, both in his political and legal life, had been excelled in this country.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Find a Grave, database and images accessed 16 October 2022, memorial page for William Hill Irvine (6 Jul 1858–20 Aug 1943), Find a Grave Memorial ID Find A Grave: Memorial #172492852, citing Eltham Cemetery, Eltham, Nillumbik Shire, Victoria, Australia; Maintained by yvonne (contributor 48669693) .
2. ↑ Public Records Office Victoria. Unassisted passenger lists (1852-1923) Record Series Number (VPRS): 947. Ship: Sobraon; Departed: London, England, 29 Sep 1879 and Plymouth, 2 Oct; Arrived: Hobson's Bay, Colony of Victoria on 18 Dec 1879. https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/3B591A76-F96C-11E9-AE98-6FF56C8E0CA0?image=437 and https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/3B591A76-F96C-11E9-AE98-6FF56C8E0CA0?image=438

   IRVINE MARGT 57 1879 DEC SOBRAON ELMSLIE JAS A

   IRVINE J M 29 1879 DEC SOBRAON ELMSLIE JAS A

   IRVINE MARY H 25 1879 DEC SOBRAON ELMSLIE JAS A

   IRVINE FANNY 24 1879 DEC SOBRAON ELMSLIE JAS A

   IRVINE M H 21 1879 DEC SOBRAON ELMSLIE JAS A

3. ↑ Ship Arrival: SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE. (1879, December 19). Bendigo Advertiser (Vic. : 1855 - 1918), p. 2. Retrieved July 9, 2023, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article88879332
4. ↑ Marriage - Vic BDM MC 5566/1891 https://my.rio.bdm.vic.gov.au/efamily-history
5. ↑ Death - Vic BDM DC 9880/1943 https://my.rio.bdm.vic.gov.au/efamily-history
6. ↑ Grave record for Sir William Hill Irvine GCMG (6 Jul 1858 - 20 Aug 1943), Billion Graves Record 31561742 Melbourne, Shire of Nillumbik, Victoria, Australia. first accessed online on the 16th of October, 2022 at: https://billiongraves.com/grave/William-Hill-Irvine/31561742
7. ↑ DEATH OF SIR WILLIAM IRVINE (1943, August 21). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 3. Retrieved July 9, 2023, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article11798585

See also:

• Link - https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/MZFW-Z24
• Sir William Hill Irvine (KB, KCMG) his profile on the Parliament of Victoria's RE-MEMBER (FORMER MEMBERS) - SEARCH RESULTS page.
• Biography for IRVINE, the Hon. Sir William Hill, KCMG, Kt, KC his profile on the Parliament of Australia website.
• J. M. Bennett and Ann G. Smith, Irvine, Sir William Hill (1858–1943), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/irvine-sir-william-hill-6801/text11765, published first in hardcopy 1983, accessed online 16 October 2022.
• William Irvine (Australian politician) from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from William Hill Irvine). first accessed online on the 16th of October, 2022 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Irvine_(Australian_politician)
• Victoria's Lieutenant-Governor with his Wife and Daughter from the Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939) of Thursday 15 April 1926, Page 5. first accessed on TROVE on the 16th of October, 2022 at: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/146584818