Robert Dixson (16 May 1842 – 27 November 1891) was a tobacco merchant and politician in the colony of South Australia. He was a brother of Sir

Hugh Dixson Sir Hugh Dixson (29 January 1841 – 11 May 1926) was an Australian business man and philanthropist. Biography Dixson was born in George Street, Sydney, the son of Hugh Dixson and his wife Helen, ''née'' Craig. He was educated at the Elfred Ho ...

, father of Sir Hugh Robert Denison and uncle of Sir

William Dixson Sir William Dixson (18 April 1870 – 17 August 1952) was an Australian businessman, collector and benefactor who bequeathed his collection of over 20,000 items of Australiana to the State Library of New South Wales, forming the ''Dixson Libr ...

History

Dixson was born in Sydney the younger son of Hugh Dixson (c. 1810 – 3 November 1880), and was educated at

Sydney Grammar School (Praise be to God) , established = , type = Independent, day school , gender = Boys , religious_affiliation = None , slogan = , headmaster = R. B. Malpass , founder = Laurence Hynes Halloran , chairman = ...

and

Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's six ...

. Hugh, who had been a tobacconist in Hanover Street,

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, founded a tobacco manufacturing business in Sydney in 1839, which in 1864 became Dixson & Sons with the addition of his sons Hugh Dixson, jr. (1841–1926) and Robert Dixson as partners. In 1877 Robert was sent to South Australia to establish "The United States Tobacco Factory" in what was Clark's flour mill in Halifax Street. He represented the electorate of

Light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 tera ...

in the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assembly was creat ...

from April 1881 to April 1884. His colleagues were

Jenkin Coles Sir Jenkin Coles (19 January 1843 – 6 December 1911) was a South Australian politician. He was a member of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1875 to 1878 and 1881 to 1911, representing the electorates of Light (1875–78, 1881–190 ...

and H. V. Moyle. He subsequently went on a trip to England and the United States, returning in 1885. In 1890 he undertook another trip to London, where he collapsed (" syncope") and died.

Family

Hugh Dixson (5 June 1810 – 3 November 1880) married Helen Craig ( – ). Their family included: *Sir

(29 January 1841 – 11 May 1926) married Emma Elizabeth Shaw (1844 – 12 April 1922) on 3 July 1866 :*Hugh Dixson (1868–1904) :*Sir

(18 April 1870 – 17 August 1952) major book, manuscript and art collector and benefactor. :*Emma Shaw Dixson (1872 – 19 November 1930) :*Helen Craig Dixson (1874–1961) :*Robert Craig Dixson (2 July 1881 – 1958) :*Thomas Storie Dixson (4 September 1886 – 8 December 1916) married Ruby Howard Turland ( – ) on 23 November 1910. Served with the Coldstream Guards, killed in France during World War I. *Robert Dixson (16 May 1842 – 27 November 1891) married Ruth Whingates ( – ) at Parramatta on 2 February 1865. Their children included: :*Hugh Robert Dixson (11 November 1865 – 25 November 1940), changed his surname in 1907 to (later Sir) Hugh Robert Denison. He married Sara Rachel Fothergill (c. 1869 – 3 September 1949) on 26 April 1893 ::*Reginald Ernest Denison BA LLB (29 November 1894 – 1975) married Beatrice Marshall ( – ) on 16 May 1923 ::*Cecil Herbert Denison (9 January 1896 – ) ::*Leslie Arthur Denison (17 December 1897 – ) married Jean Windeyer Raine ( – ) on 7 May 1927 *Isabella Dixson (1845–1920) married Rev. Frederick Hibberd ( – 1908) on 11 January 1866 *Dr. Thomas Dixson M.B., C.M. (10 April 1854 – 9 December 1932) married his cousin Janet Maria Holdway "Janie" Storie ( – 1945) on 11 November 1887; Both adopted the surname Storie Dixson; they had three daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dixson, Robert Australian tobacconists Members of the South Australian House of Assembly 1842 births 1891 deaths 19th-century Australian politicians 19th-century Australian businesspeople