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The son of David Burns, an
Edinburgh merchant, was born near that city on 10 February 1846. He was
educated at Newington academy and Edinburgh high school, and at 16 years
of age went with an elder brother to Queensland, arriving at Brisbane,
then a very small town, in 1862. He immediately went to the back country
to get colonial experience, and afterwards joined his brother in a
business at Brisbane. Hearing of the gold discovery at Gympie Burns rode
120 miles and was the first to arrive on the field. Before he was 21 he
owned stores at Gympie, One Mile Creek, and Kilkivan. In 1870 his father
having died he sold his interests and returned to Scotland. Two years
later he was established at Townsville as a storekeeper, where he was
joined by Robert Philp (q.v.). In 1877 Philp was left in charge of the
Townsville business while Burns made a new headquarters at Sydney. From
there a line of sailing ships and steamers was established trading between
Sydney and Queensland ports. This became the Queensland Steam Shipping
Company Limited. Much competition followed with the Australian Steam
Navigation Company, and after a few years Burns negotiated terms under
which the Q.S.S. Co. took over the A.S.N. fleet. In 1883 Burns Philp and
Company Limited was formed by amalgamating the various businesses in
Sydney and Queensland carried on in the names of James Burns and of Robert
Philp and Company. With Burns as chairman of directors the company
expanded rapidly and lines of steamers were run to the Pacific islands and
the East Indies. Its activities were not confined to shipping, and the
trading business became one of the most varied in Australia. Burns also
took up pastoral interests and was a director of many important companies.
In his private life he took much interest in the old volunteer movement in
which he was a captain in 1891. In 1897 he was in command of the New South
Wales lancer regiment with the rank of colonel, and he was afterwards in
command of the 1st brigade of the Australian light horse until his
retirement in 1908. In that year he was nominated to the legislative
council, and during the war of 1914-18 he brought forward a scheme for the
insurance of men with dependants to which he contributed £2000 a year
during the duration of the war. Another activity was his interest in the
Caledonian Society, of which he was president for nearly 20 years. During
the last years of his life the Burnside Homes for Scottish orphans near
Parramatta, for which he gave the land, and very largely founded, were a
great interest to him. He died at Parramatta on 22 August 1923. His wife
had died some years before and two sons were killed in the war. His third
son, James Burns, who also went to the war and was mentioned in
dispatches, succeeded his father as chairman of directors of Burns Philp
and Company. He was also survived by three daughters. He was created
K.C.M.G. in 1917.
Burns was a man of great
activity and vision; a true empire-builder. He did much in the development
of Queensland, and his courage, shrewdness and hard work earned the
admiration and respect of all his associates. Somewhat thin and austere in
appearance, he had great sympathy for those in need. As a young man he had
helped in the relief of Paris after the Commune in 1871. In his later days
he contributed something like £100,000 to the Burnside Homes, an avenue of
cottages housing about 200 orphans. |
