Sir Keith Cameron Wilson (3 September 1900 – 28 September 1987) was an Australian lawyer and politician. He was a Senator for

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

from 1938 to 1944, representing the

United Australia Party The United Australia Party (UAP) was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. The party won four federal elections in that time, usually governing in coalition with the Country Party. It provided two prim ...

, and later returned to parliament as a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

from 1949 to 1954 and 1955 to 1966. Despite his long service he never held ministerial office.

Early life

Wilson was born on 3 September 1900 in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, a son of lawyer A. T. K. Wilson (died 15 August 1925) and his wife Lilian (née Laurence). He attended

St Peter's Collegiate School, Adelaide , other_name = The Collegiate School of St Peter , seal_image = St Peter's College, Adelaide Logo.svg , seal_size = 150 , image = SPSC chapel and memorial hall.jpg , image_size ...

, and studied law at the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

.Papers of Sir Keith Wilson and Lady Elizabeth Wilson, 1928-2001
National Library of Australia1949 election – Sturt, SA
Keith Cameron Wilson His grandfather, C. A. Wilson, and great-grandfather, Thomas Wilson, were also lawyers who practised in South Australia. In 1930 he married Elizabeth "Betty" Hornabrook Bonython (25 January 1907 – 25 September 2008), born in Adelaide, the eldest daughter of ''

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'' editor, and lord mayor of Adelaide, Sir

John Lavington Bonython Sir John Lavington Bonython (10 September 1875 – 6 November 1960) was a prominent public figure in Adelaide, known for his work in journalism, business and politics. In association with his father, he became involved in the management of n ...

(1875–1960) and his first wife

Blanche Ada Bray Sir John Lavington Bonython (10 September 1875 – 6 November 1960) was a prominent public figure in Adelaide, known for his work in journalism, business and politics. In association with his father, he became involved in the management of n ...

(1881–1908). She would be very active in community affairs, serving on the boards of a number of organisations, in recognition of which she was appointed

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

in 1946, and CBE in 1959.

Political career

In the

1934 Australian federal election The 1934 Australian federal election was held in Australia on 15 September 1934. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 18 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent United Australia Party led by Prime Minister ...

he was, with J. L. Price, nominated by the

Liberal and Country League Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and ...

for the seat of Boothby. Price was the winning candidate. In the

1937 Australian federal election The 1937 Australian federal election was held in Australia on 23 October 1937. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent UAP–Country coalition government, led by Prim ...

, Keith was elected a Senator for

for the

, serving from 1938 to 1944. In 1940 he joined the army, continuing to serve in the Senate. He was not re-elected in 1943, so when his term ended, he went on active service and became a " Rat of Tobruk", serving with the 2/7th Field Regiment,

Royal Australian Artillery The Royal Regiment of Australian Artillery, normally referred to as the Royal Australian Artillery (RAA), is a Regiment of the Australian Army descended from the original colonial artillery units prior to Australia's federation. Australia's first ...

, in North Africa, and subsequently in

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. After his return, he stood in the 1949 election for the

Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is a centre-right political party in Australia, one of the two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-left Australian Labor Party. It was founded in 1944 as the successor to the United Au ...

(which had absorbed the UAP in 1944) as its candidate in the newly created seat of Sturt, and won. He held Sturt until his defeat by

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

's Norman Makin in 1954. A redistribution ahead of the 1955 election saw most of Sturt's Labor-friendly territory shifted to newly created Bonython, which made Sturt notionally Liberal. Makin opted to contest Bonython, and Wilson retook Sturt on a large swing. He held the seat until his retirement in 1966 which resulted in his son,

Ian Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...

, gaining preselection for the seat, which he subsequently won and held for over 20 years. Wilson was knighted on 1 January 1966. He died in Adelaide on 28 September 1987.Death of Sir Keith Wilson
Hansard, 7 October 1987, parlinfo.aph.gov.au He was the last surviving member of the 1937-1944 Senate.

Publications

*"Liberal and Country League: the origins and development", by Sir Keith Wilson; Located at Barr Smith Library, University of Adelaide.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Keith 1900 births 1987 deaths United Australia Party members of the Parliament of Australia Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Liberal and Country League politicians Members of the Australian Senate for South Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Sturt Australian Knights Bachelor Bonython family People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide Australian military personnel of World War II 20th-century Australian politicians Adelaide Law School alumni Members of the Australian House of Representatives Members of the Australian Senate