Walter McGill b. c.1826

Also known as Walter M'Gill, Waller McGill
  • Artist ,
  • Artist (Sculptor)
Mid 19th century Port Fairy (VIC) and Sydney sculptor, monumental mason and phrenologist.
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sculptor, monumental mason and phrenologist. McGill worked in Port Fairy, Victoria, from the mid 1850s until the early 1860s, then lived at Maitland, NSW, and was working in Sydney by 1864.

In Port Fairy McGill worked on the carvings of St. John’s Church of England, designed by Nathaniel Billing and built between 1853 and 1858. Author Hal Porter later identified a number of McGill carvings in Port Fairy’s buildings and cemeteries in a letter quoted in Scarlett, 1980, pp 394-5.

After moving to Sydney, McGill carved the St. Jude’s Fountain, Alison Road, Randwick (NSW, 1866) and the nearby statue of Captain Cook, High Cross, Randwick (1874). The St. Jude’s fountain features a clever use of naturally occurring red stripes in the sandstone block to highlight the decorative floral motif.

McGill carved the capitals on James Barnet’s extension of the Australian Museum, Sydney, 1866, and was commissioned by NSW Chief Justice Sir James Martin to sculpt a life-size replica of the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates for Martin’s Potts Point garden (1870, moved to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, during World War II).

McGill carved the allegorical figures, including “Science”, on the Sydney General Post Office’s George Street façade in 1869, as well as the northern façade of the first stage of the same building. Darlinghurst Gaol also benefited from his work.

McGill is also credited with the Woolloomooloo Gates of the Royal Botanic Gardens, erected in 1873.

As an avid phrenologist, McGill cast the death mask of executed bushranger Captain Moonlight in 1880 (Historic Houses Trust NSW Police & Justice Museum Collection). He was also known as a caricaturist and his model of the Zigzag Railway was sent to the Melbourne Exhibition in 1880-1881.

McGill died at his Darlinghurst home on 2 July 1881, apparently as the result of an earlier accident involving a collision with a horse in Paddington.

Writers:
Riddler, Eric
Date written:
2006
Last updated:
2011

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References [<ExternalResource: (1851), 'Scotland census 1851'.>, <ExternalResource: (7 July 1881), 'Local news', Maitland Mercury, Maitland, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: Kerr, Joan (April 1986), 'The Architecture of Scientific Sydney', in Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, Volume 118, Parts 3 and 4, pp 181-193, Sydney, NSW, (paper delivered to Royal Society of New South Wales, 1985-05-18).>, <ExternalResource: Ellmoos, Laila (19 October 2010) 'Information sourced from'.>, <ExternalResource: (1841), 'Scotland census 1841'.>, <ExternalResource: 'NSW Death Records : 1217/1881'.>, <ExternalResource: 'Justice & Police Museum Collection website', Historic Houses Trust NSW, Sydney, NSWurl:, .>, <ExternalResource: (5 July 1881), 'Coroner's Inquests', Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: (14 July 1881), 'Obituary', Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: (24 December 1863), 'Insolvency proceedings: Meetings of creditors', Maitland Mercury, Maitland, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: Edwards, Deborah (2003), 'Presence & Absence : Portrait Sculpture in Australia', National Portrait Gallery, Canberra, ACT.>, <ExternalResource: Holland, Julian; Shortland, Michael (et al) (1995), 'Reading Heads & Ruling Passions', University of Sydney Macleay Museum, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: McCulloch, Alan (1984), 'Encyclopedia of Australian Art', Hutchinson of Australia (2nd revised edition), Melbourne, VIC.>, <ExternalResource: Moore, William (1934), 'Story of Australian Art', Angus & Robertson (facsimile 1980), Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: Scarlett, Ken (1980), 'Australian Sculptors', Thomas Nelson Australia, West Melbourne, VIC.>, <ExternalResource: Sherratt, Tim (ed) (1995), '[review of] Reading Heads and Ruling Passions: an exhibition on phrenology', Melbourne, Vic : MU in HASN News, Number 35, 1995-12.>, <ExternalResource: Sturgeon, Graeme (1978), 'The development of Australian Sculpture : 1788-1975', London, England, UK : Thames and Hudson, p 239, note 25.>, <ExternalResource: Wilson, Edwin (2004), 'Poetry of Place: Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney', Botanic Gardens Trust, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: 'High Cross Precinct, bounded by Avoca Street, Belmore Road, and Cuthill Street, Randwick', Randwick City Council website, Randwick, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: (8 February 2004), 'Port Fairy', Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: 'Sands Sydney and N.S.W. Directory', John Sands (various editions), Sydney, NSW.>] [<ExternalResource: (1851), 'Scotland census 1851'.>, <ExternalResource: (7 July 1881), 'Local news', Maitland Mercury, Maitland, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: Kerr, Joan (April 1986), 'The Architecture of Scientific Sydney', in Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, Volume 118, Parts 3 and 4, pp 181-193, Sydney, NSW, (paper delivered to Royal Society of New South Wales, 1985-05-18).>, <ExternalResource: Ellmoos, Laila (19 October 2010) 'Information sourced from'.>, <ExternalResource: (1841), 'Scotland census 1841'.>, <ExternalResource: 'NSW Death Records : 1217/1881'.>, <ExternalResource: 'Justice & Police Museum Collection website', Historic Houses Trust NSW, Sydney, NSWurl:, .>, <ExternalResource: (5 July 1881), 'Coroner's Inquests', Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: (14 July 1881), 'Obituary', Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, NSW.>, <ExternalResource: (24 December 1863), 'Insolvency proceedings: Meetings of creditors', Maitland Mercury, Maitland, NSW.>]