William N. Robertson

William Nathaniel Robertson, 1866–1938William N. Robertson (1866–1938) C.B.E., CMG was a Scottish-Australian surgeon who served as Vice Chancellor of the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The suburb of Robertson in Brisbane is named after him.

Early life William Nathaniel Robertson was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1866, the son of Rev. Peter Robertson and his wife. His parents left him in the care of his grandparents in Scotland where he attended Royal High School in Edinburgh and enrolled in the University of Edinburgh in 1888, taking his Bachelor of Medicine and Master of Surgery degrees in 1892. He worked in hospitals in Scotland and London. His family emigrated to Australia in 1873 to improve Mrs Robertson's health and moved to Dalby and later Ipswich, Queensland where his father was a Presbyterian minister. After completing his medical studies Robertson joined his family in Australia in 1893 and he opened a general medical practice in Ipswich. He later served as an ear, nose and throat specialist in Brisbane, and was an honorary surgeon with the Royal Brisbane Hospital and Mater Misericordiae Hospital. His funeral was held at St Andrews Presbyterian Church in Creek Street after which he was cremated at Mount Thompson Crematorium. Following a bequest of his daughter Clara Joan Roe in 1984, an annual scholarship is presented in his name to assist with medical research. The suburb of Robertson in Brisbane was named in his honour.