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Johnson Hindin Genealogy
Suggestions for using this site: Click “Johnson-Hindin Genealogy,” above, to go to the Home Page. Click the “Ancestors” tab below to see a pedigree chart. (If no ancestors appear in the chart, see if the person has a spouse by clicking the blue down arrow, and then click the “Ancestors” tab.) In the pedigree chart, click the blue down arrow to see a person’s family and click the gold right arrow to see more ancestors. Click the “Descendants” tab, below, then the “Register Format” option for a good descendancy report.
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 1912 - 1974
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| Suffix |
M.Sc., Ph.D |
| Born |
11 May 1912 |
| Gender |
Male |
| Died |
19 Mar 1974 |
| Person ID |
I7652 |
Johnson Hindin Tree |
| Last Modified |
15 Jul 2012 |
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| Notes |
- Professor of Analytical Chemistry at Queens University, Belfast.
The following obituary was published in the Proceedings of the Society for Analytical Chemistry (1974), v. 11, pp. 185-186:
CECIL LEEBURN WILSON
Cecil Wilson, Professor of Analytical Chemistry in The Queen's University of Belfast, died on Tuesday, March 19th, 1974, of a cerebral haemorrhage following some years of failing health.
He was born in Maghera, Co. Londonderry, in 1912 and received his early education at Rainey Endowed School, Magherafelt. In 1929 he entered Queen’s University to study chemistry, achieving a First Class Honours B.Sc. in 1932 and an M.Sc. in 1933. A Musgrave Research Scholarship allowed him to study for a Ph.D. at Glasgow University and on attaining this goal he returned to Queen's in 1936 as an Assistant Lecturer. Here he was able to pursue what proved to be his lifelong interest in microchemistry. ln 1939 he was appointed to an assistant lectureship at the Sir John Cass College in London, from which he was released for war service from 1940 to 1944 with the Armaments Research Department of the Ministry of Supply. He would recall, with characteristic humour, how much he valued his micro-chemical skill in the exercise of his task of analysing enemy detonators. After a brief retum to the Cass, he was appointed to a Lectureship in Chemistry at Queen's in 1946 and became a Reader in 1950. In 1953 he obtained his D.Sc. and in 1958 was appointed to a personal Chair in Analytical Chemistry, the first of these ever created in the UK. This was converted into an established Chair of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry in 1963, which, in 1968, was split into separate Chairs, Cecil Wilson retaining the Chair of Analytical Chemistry until his death.
Cecil Wilson's main interest lay in the field of inorganic microanalysis. He was a skilled microscopist and was largely responsible for the development of the torsion-fibre sub-micro balance. His first book, "An Introduction to Microchemical Methods,” was published in 1938 and, following the war, he published two editions, in co-authorship with Professor Belcher, of a book on inorganic microanalysis. Similar co-operation produced various editions of the well known “New Methods of Analytical Chemistry." He was a chemist of wide interests and, although these were principally concerned with analytical chemistry, he found time and energy to keep up with inorganic and physical chemistry. With Professor Stewart at Queen's he published the seventh edition of “Recent Advances in Inorganic and Physical Chemistry" and with Bamett at the Cass he produced the well established inorganic chemistry text. In his undergraduate lectures, he took pleasure in teaching fundamental inorganic chemistry to first-year students.
During his Professorship, he developed a research school of diverse interests which offered postgraduate experience to students from an equally varied range of countries. Sorne thirty students passed under his care with the production of one hundred or so papers.
Professor Wilson's taste for the English language led him into many analytical literary endeavours. He was elected to the Editorial Board of Microchimica Acta in 1949 and served on it to the time of his death; between 1955 and 1962 he also acted as regional editor for papers written in English. When Talanta was established in 1958, he became its first Editor in Chief, acting as such up to 1964 and since then acting as consulting editor. In 1959, in conjunction with his brother David, he became Editor of the series “Comprehensive Analytical Chemistry" and, since its foundation in 1967, he served on the editorial board of Analytical Letters.
Cecil Wilson gave generously of his time and energy to the activities of scientific bodies and the administration of his university. He served on the Council of the SAC three times since 1951. He was a founder member of the Microchemical Group and acted as Chairman in 1951-52. He was a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chemistry and acted for many years as chairman of the Northern Ireland Section. His growing intemational reputation led to honorary membership of the Austrian Microchemical Society in 1955 and he was elected to membership of the Royal Irish Academy in 1966. He served for three years as Dean in the Faculty of Science; he was a member of the University Senate, of Boards of Curators and of committees innumerable.
His work in microanalytical chemistry and his rare spirit of enquiry led him to an active interest the authenticity of written and printed documents. He became an acknowledged expert and from 1953 was Document Examiner to the Ministry of Home Affairs of Northern Ireland. He frequently appeared as an expert witness in court proceedings and, as many of us will know from experience, was in great demand to instruct and entertain audiences of all descriptions in this field.
Let us remember how Cecil Wilson's liveliness of mind, sagacity, integrity and warm humanity brought pleasure to gatherings of analytical chemists, not only in the UK but throughout the world. His great charm, sincerity and humour turned many colleagues rapidly into personal friends. Nor were these superficial impressions, for he applied with consistency the same courtesy and kindness to porters, secretaries, raw young lecturers and senior university staff alike. As a superior he was ever helpful yet never interfering or unjustly critical. Cecil Wilson was a true gentleman. The loss which we as a Chemistry Department here at Queen's now feel will he repeated in the larger rentext of the Society for Analytical Chemistry.
He is survived by his wife Grace, a daughter and a son. M. A. LEONARD.
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