Walter Hill (garden curator)

Walter Hill (1820–1904) was the first curator of the Brisbane Botanic Gardens at Gardens Point in Brisbane, Australia.

Walter Hill was born at Scotsdyke, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, on 31 December 1819, the son of David Hill and Elizabeth Beattie.Scotsdyke is virtually on the border of England and Scotland and is presumably a reference to the moat about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) south of the village of Canobie (now spelled Canonbie).

Walter married Jane Smith, the daughter of John Smith and Jane Brunton, on 16 September 1849 at Holy Trinity Brompton Church, Middlesex, England. They had a daughter Ann (born 25 April 1850 in England, died 1 November 1871 in Brisbane).

The family immigrated to Sydney, Australia in 1852 on the "Maitland", where Walter initially tried his luck on the goldfields. In 1855, Walter undertook an expedition (as a botanist) to North Queensland in which most of the party were murdered by Aborigines. After this, Water accepted the position of curator of the Brisbane Botanic Gardens.

The death of their only daughter, Ann, in 1871 was tragic for Walter and Jane. She was buried in Toowong Cemetery, despite it not being opened for burials. However, Governor Samuel Blackall had already been buried there prior to its opening and Ann's burial was the 2nd of six burials that preceded the official openings. Walter planted a hoop pine near Ann's grave and did a number of other plantings in the cemetery, despite having no apparent official role in connection with it. It appears he was simply motivated to make her burial ground a beautiful place.

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