Sir Samuel Gerald Wood Burston OBE (24 April 191514 July 2015) was an Australian grazier who represented the rural sector as President of a forerunner of the

National Farmers' Federation The National Farmers' Federation (NFF) is an Australian non-profit membershipbased organization that represents farmers and the agricultural sector in Australia. Historically, NFF was a key player in a number of industrial relations disputes, inc ...

, and served as a member of the board of the

Reserve Bank of Australia The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is Australia's central bank and banknote issuing authority. It has had this role since 14 January 1960, when the ''Reserve Bank Act 1959'' removed the central banking functions from the Commonwealth Bank. T ...

and the

Australian Science and Technology Council The Australian Science, Technology and Engineering Council (ASTEC) was an Australian government agency. ASTEC was established in April 1977 as the Australian Science and Technology Council to advise the Government of Australia, Australian governmen ...

Life

Samuel Gerald Wood Burston was born in 1915 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 ...

, the eldest son of Sir (Samuel) Roy Burston, a distinguished physician who later became Director-General of Medical Services in the

Australian Military Forces The Australian Military Forces (AMF) was the official name of the Army of Australia from 1916 to 1980. This encompassed both the (full-time) "regular army", and the (part-time) forces, variously known during this period as the Militia, the Citizen ...

. (Roy Burston served in Gallipoli; Sam was born the day before the Anzac landing, and lived to see the centenary of that event celebrated internationally.) In 1934, Sam Burston joined the Australian Army as a private, and was commissioned as a lieutenant in 1935. In 1939 he studied temperate farming techniques in Britain and Germany. In World War II he was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

on 30 December 1941, and was the commander of a tank squadron with the 9th Division, which was distinguished at the

Battle of El Alamein There were two battles of El Alamein in World War II, both fought in 1942. The Battles occurred in North Africa, in Egypt, in and around an area named after a railway stop called El Alamein. * First Battle of El Alamein: 1–27 July 1942 * Secon ...

(1942). On repatriation he ran his property Marlee, near

Naracoorte, South Australia Naracoorte is a town in the Limestone Coast region of South Australia, approximately 336 kilometres south-east of Adelaide and 100 kilometres north of Mount Gambier, South Australia, Mount Gambier on the Riddoch Highway (A66). History Before the ...

. He later moved to Noss Estate at

Casterton, Victoria Casterton is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Glenelg Highway, 42 kilometres east of the South Australian border, in the Shire of Glenelg. The Glenelg River passes through the town. Casterton is named after the village of Caster ...

, where he was a grazier until retirement in 1985.Oxford Index
Retrieved 3 February 2015 From 1976 to 1979 Sir Sam Burston (he was knighted in 1977) was President of the Australian Woolgrowers' and Graziers' Council. In that capacity he was deeply involved in helping resolve the 1978 Live Sheep Export Dispute, through extensive negotiations with the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...

, his Minister for Industrial Relations,

Tony Street Anthony Austin Street (8 February 1926 – 25 October 2022) was an Australian politician. He served in the House of Representatives from 1966 to 1984, representing the Division of Corangamite for the Liberal Party. He held ministerial office in ...

, and the President of the

Australian Council of Trade Unions The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), originally the Australasian Council of Trade Unions, is the largest peak body representing workers in Australia. It is a national trade union centre of 46 affiliated unions and eight trades and la ...

Bob Hawke Robert James Lee Hawke (9 December 1929 – 16 May 2019) was an Australian politician and union organiser who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (A ...

. In 1979, Burston oversaw the merger of the AWGG with seven other rural bodies to create the

. He was a Member of the

Board 1977–87. From 1979 to 1985 he was a member and occasional acting Chairman of the

. In 2012, when aged 97, he was instrumental in assisting Dr Ian Howie-Willis research his book ''A Medical Emergency: Major-General 'Ginger' Burston and the Army Medical Service in World War II'', by sending him 22 parcels of his father's World War II correspondence that had not previously been available to researchers. Sir Sam Burston celebrated his 100th birthday on 24 April 2015 in an aged care facility in Casterton. He died there on 14 July 2015, survived by two children, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Both his wives, Verna and Phyllis, predeceased him.

Honours

Burston was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1966 for services to firefighting. (He had played a role in convincing the then

Premier of Victoria The premier of Victoria is the head of government in the Australian state of Victoria. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, and is the leader of the political party able to secure a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembly ...

Henry Bolte Sir Henry Edward Bolte GCMG (20 May 1908 – 4 January 1990) was an Australian politician who served as the 38th Premier of Victoria. To date he is the longest-serving Victorian premier, having been in office for over 17 consecutive years. E ...

, to strengthen the

Country Fire Authority The Country Fire Authority (CFA) is a volunteer fire service responsible for fire suppression, rescues, and response to other accidents and hazards across most of the state Victoria, Australia. CFA comprises over 1,200 brigades organised in 21 ...

.) He was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

ed in the Queen's Birthday Honours on 14 June 1977, "in recognition of service to primary industry".Australian Government Gazette No. S 102, 14 June 1977
Retrieved 3 February 2015

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burston, Sam 1915 births 2015 deaths Australian farmers Australian Army officers Australian Knights Bachelor Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Australian centenarians Men centenarians People from Adelaide Australian Army personnel of World War II