Lawrence Stanley Jackson (1884 - 1974)

Born 2 Apr 1884 in Stepney, South Australia (Australia)

Ancestors

Husband of Hazel Winifred (Powell) Jackson — married 1912 in South Australia, Australia

Husband of Phyllis Lee (Vale) Jackson — married 29 Apr 1944 in Brighton Beach, Victoria, Australia

Died 7 Aug 1974 at age 90 in North Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

Biography

Lawrence Jackson is Notable.

Lawrence Jackson was born in the Colony of South Australia (1836-1900)

Lawrence Stanley Jackson was born on 2nd April 1884 in Stepney, South Australia (Australia). He was the son of English emigrant William Samuel Jackson and South Australian-born Mary Norton. ^[1] He was educated at Pulteney Street School, Adelaide.

In 1903 he joined the Commonwealth Public Service as a clerk in the Postmaster-General's Department. Transferring to the Federal Taxation Office in Adelaide in 1911, he would spend the remainder of his working life in taxation administration.

Lawrence married Hazel Powell on 21st March 1912 in the Methodist (now Uniting) Church, Norwood. ^[2]

Lawrence was promoted senior assessor (1916), assistant deputy commissioner, Sydney (1920), secretary in the central office, Melbourne (1925), and deputy-commissioner, Sydney (1929). He played a major role in the negotiations which achieved substantially uniform taxation Acts for the States and the Commonwealth in 1936. Moving to Canberra, he became Second Commissioner that year. On 6th May 1939 he was appointed Australian Taxation Commissioner.

Following Hazel's death in 1940 and a time of mourning, Lawrence married again, to Phyllis Vale in St Leonard's Presbyterian Church, Brighton Beach, Melbourne, on 29th April 1944. ^[3]

Significant administrative changes occurred during his commissionership, including the establishment of the Commonwealth as the sole authority for assessing and collecting income tax (1942), and the introduction of 'pay-as-you-earn' and provisional taxation (1944). The associated work imposed a heavy burden on him. Although offered reappointment, he retired on 5th May 1946 at the expiration of his term.

After his retirement Lawrence and Phyllis lived in Melbourne and then in Adelaide.

In 1949 Lawrence was commissioned to edit the official War-time Taxation History 1939-1945; the two unpublished volumes are held by the Australian Taxation Office Library, Canberra.

Aged ninety years, he passed away on 7th August 1974 in North Adelaide. The Canberra Times published the following obituary on 13th August: ^[4] He was survived by Phyllis, his daughter and two sons, and their families.

"Mr Lawrence Stanley , Jackson, a former Federal Commissioner of Taxation, died in Adelaide on Wednesday, aged 90. He was a second commissioner from 1936 to 1939 and commissioner from 1939 until his retirement in 1946.

"While he was in office the basis of the present systems of pay-as-you-earn and uniform taxation were introduced.

"He was a member of the Bailey Committee which in 1944 inquired into the provisions governing promotion, promotion appeals and temporary transfers in the Public Service. The major recommendations of this committee were incorporated in the Public Service Act (No 2) 1945.

"Mr Jackson was a former Australian president of the International Institute of Accountants.

"Born in St Peters, South Australia, in 1884, he was educated at Pulteney Street School, SA.

"He was twice married, in 1912 to Hazel Powell, who died in 1940, and in 1944 to Phyllis Lee, who survives him. He had two sons and one daughter. One son is Sir Lawrence Jackson, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Western Australia.

"The funeral was held in Adelaide on Friday."

Sources

1. ↑ South Australia Birth Index #323/405 1884; registered at Norwood
2. ↑ South Australia Marriage Index #250/805 1912; registered at Norwood
3. ↑ Victoria Marriage Index #8693/1944
4. ↑ The Canberra Times (ACT: 1926 - 1995) Tue 13 Aug 1974 Page 7 OBITUARY; accessed 15 Nov 2023

See also:

• Castles, Ian. 'Jackson, Lawrence Stanley (1884–1974)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1996; accessed online 15 Nov 2023.