William Redmond (Red) Dalton, one of six children, was born in Sydney but spent his early childhood in Orange where the Dalton family have always been well known. His father died in the infamous "flu" epidemic of 1919 when Red was only two and soon after the family moved to Sydney. Red was educated at St. Stanislaus' College at Bathurst.

He studied Medicine at Sydney University graduating in 1941. He then entered the RAAF and saw service mainly in the Pacific. On returning from the War he spent some time in general practice as an assistant to Dr Walter McGrath at Kensington before deciding to specialise. He obtained the MRACP in 1950. He joined the staff of St Vincents, Lewisham and the Mater hospitals becoming an honorary physician at each of these hospitals. He was also very active at the "Repat" and Concord Hospital. His private practice was in Macquarie Street.

Red had a particular interest in haematology and was a member of the Haematological Society of Australia. He also had an interest in diabetes and at Lewisham was physician to the diabetic clinic. Red was a most astute physician and teacher. He prided himself on being able to make a diagnosis by merely observing a patient's mannerisms. He was highly regarded by his students and became a tutor in medicine. In the late sixties and early seventies he examined final year medical students. He always tried to put the examinees at ease, holding the view that he was there to find out how much they knew, not how much they did not know.

Red loved sport in general and in particular golf and cricket. He played off a single figure handicap in golf and was a talented spin bowler and hard hitting batsman. As a young man he played cricket for Sydney University and later was the driving force behind the annual cricket matches between the honoraries and residents at St Vincent's, Lewisham and Mater hospitals. Red is survived by his wife Cecile and seven children, one of whom, John, was also to join the medical profession.