Burton, Sir William Westbrooke, 1794 – 1888

William Westbrooke Burton (1794-1888), judge and parliamentarian, was born in England, son of Edmund and Elizabeth Burton. He was educated in England and after service in the Royal Navy was called to the English Bar at Inner Temple in 1824. He travelled to Cape Town in 1827 and in 1832 was appointed to the Supreme Court of NSW by Governor Bourke. Burton took leave in 1839 and returned to England. Prominent residents of the colony raised a subscription of twelve hundred pounds in order to establish a scholarship for sons of clergymen in Burton's name; this was the origin of the Burton Scholarship at The King's School, Parramatta. Burton returned to Sydney in 1841 and left again in 1844 to become puisne judge at Madras. He returned to Sydney in 1857.

In August 1857 Burton was appointed to the NSW Legislative Council. He was elected president of the Legislative Council in 1858 and resigned in 1861 after the Robertson government attempted to 'swamp' the parliament with new members in order to pass the Robertson land legislation. Burton left Sydney in 1861 and returned to England where he remained until his death.