Tom Gill (public servant)


Thomas Gill CMG ISO was a public servant in South Australia who served as Under-Treasurer from 1894 to 1920.

History

Gill was born in Glen Osmond the son of Thomas Gill and Maria Florence Gill née Selby, and educated at the local school.
In 1865 he joined the Public Service as a junior in the Volunteer Staff office. He transferred to the Audit Office, where in 1877 he became chief clerk. In 1878 he was appointed to the Agent-General's Office, London, where he uncovered some valuable information regarding the way interest on the public debt of the colony was paid, resulting in significant savings. In 1881 he transferred to the Treasury; in June 1889 he was appointed Accountant to the Treasury.
He served as secretary to the South Australian delegates to the 1891 Federal Convention, and in 1894 was appointed Under-Treasurer of South Australia, welcomed by the press as a "... smart, reliable, and most deserving public officer", and faithfully served under eight Treasurers of various political hues.
He retired in 1920; his replacement was Henry Furneaux Peacock.
Gill and Peter Whitington were in 1922 appointed as a commission to enquire into the public service to identify savings and means of simplifying and improving procedures.
He died in the Adelaide Hospital after being struck by a tram at the corner of Currie and King William streets.

Treasurers for whom he served

See Treasurer of South Australia

Other interests

In 1886 he published a work on the bibliography of South Australia, and another on the Northern Territory in 1902. His large personal library featured an extensive collection of works on the early history of the Colony. He compiled and published a Bibliography of South Australia in 1886, a History and Topography of Glen Osmond in 1902, and a biography of Colonel William Light in 1911.
He was a foundation member and longtime treasurer of the South Australian branch of the Royal Geographical Society.
He was a trustee of the Savings Bank of South Australia from 1920, succeeding H. Allerdale Grainger.
He was a member of the Municipal Tramways Trust.
He was an executive officer of the Public Service Superannuation Fund Board to 1920.

Family

He married Louisa Jane Bristow on 5 October 1874. They had a home "Willalar" in Glen Osmond. Their children were:
Walter Gill FLS, forestry administrator, for many years at Wirrabara, South Australia, has been described as a brother. This is contradicted by what is known of their respective parents and their birthplaces.