Robert Thomson[a] Paton (16 March 1856[2] – 17 February 1929) was a medical doctor who served as Director-General of Public Health for
New South Wales from 1913 to 1921.
Biography
Paton was born at historic
Portobello Castle,
Edinburgh,[3] a son of John Govan Stewart Paton, carver and gilder, and his wife Catherine Paton, née Thomson.[2]
The family claimed descent from
Captain John Paton, a martyr to the
Covenanter cause, and closely related to the Paton family of
Alloa, cotton spinners, later Paton & Baldwins Ltd.
He completed one year of a medical course at the
Edinburgh University before in 1876 leaving for Australia, where he worked as a doctor's assistant in
Bathurst and
Wallsend[2] and sailed extensively through the South Sea Islands in a yacht which he part-owned.[3]
In 1884[2] he returned to Edinburgh and completed the course, becoming an
FRCS and
LRCS.
He returned to Australia and entered into general practice, then joined the public service as a medical officer at
Trial Bay prison. Subsequent appointments include:
Government Medical Officer and Vaccinator for Sydney, replacing Dr. Strong, 1891.[4]
Police Surgeon and Government Medical Officer (1895).
Medical Officer, Darlinghurst Gaol; certified the death by hanging of Stuart Wilson Christopher Briggs in 1899[5] death by hanging of
Jimmy Governor on 18 January 1901, and the death in custody of George Harris in 1905.[6]
Paton and Dr
J. B. Nash MLC were sent to Wollongong hospital by special train immediately after the
Mount Kembla coalmine disaster of July 1902 to help treat miners suffering from "afterdamp" (a carbon monoxide mixture) inhalation,[7]
the cause of most of the 93 deaths.
Inspector General of Hospitals and Charities (1912)
Director-General of Public Health 1913–1921, when he retired, then became medical superintendent for
Anthony Hordern, a position he held until his death.
Commissioner under Venereal Diseases Act of 1918 (1919)[8]
^Although Paton's middle name was Thomson, "Thompson" was the predominant spelling in newspaper reports, and on the official document Paton signed testifying to the death by hanging of
Jimmy Governor at
Darlinghurst Gaol on 18 January 1901. His son A. A. Paton spelled it "Thompson" when he enlisted with the
First AIF in 1918.[1]
^"Personal". Barrier Miner. Vol. XXXII, no. 9603. New South Wales, Australia. 14 June 1919. p. 10. Retrieved 5 January 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
^
abc""My Ashes !"". The Sun (Sydney). No. 5748. New South Wales, Australia. 12 April 1929. p. 12. Retrieved 2 January 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
^"Obituary". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 30, 167. New South Wales, Australia. 10 September 1934. p. 10. Retrieved 3 January 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
^
ab"Family Notices". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 28, 143. New South Wales, Australia. 17 March 1928. p. 16. Retrieved 4 January 2022 – via National Library of Australia.