Robert Risson
Australian engineer, soldier, and tramway administrator (1901-1992)
Major General Sir Robert Joseph Henry Risson, (20 April 1901 – 19 July 1992) was an Australian engineer, soldier, and tramway administrator. After university he worked for the Brisbane Tramways Trust, later under the auspice of Brisbane City Council, as an engineer and administrator. During World War II Risson served in the Middle East and New Guinea. Following the war he returned to the Brisbane tramways, and became chairman of the Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board from 1949 to 1970. In this position he defended trams, and is considered a major factor in the survival of Melbourne's tram system. Risson had ties with a myriad of professional and community organisations, including the Freemasons, where he served as Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of Victoria in the mid-1970s. Risson was decorated for his service, holding the rank of major general and being knighted.
Early life
Robert Joseph Henry Risson was born on 20 April 1901 in Ma Ma Creek, Queensland. He attended Gatton State High School, passing the Senior Public Examination in November 1918, and matriculated to The University of Queensland where he studied Civil Engineering. He graduated in 1922/3 and obtained a Bachelor of Engineering (civil).
“Robert Risson” enters the record as australian engineer, soldier, and tramway administrator (1901-1992). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Robert, Risson and Australian can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7349302. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1901, 1992, 1949 and 1970.
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This entry incorporates text from “Robert Risson” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.