Born in Lyndoch, South Australia to George Septimus Robinson, publican and grazier, and his wife Lucy,[1] Robinson was educated in Clare and Roseworthy Agricultural College, where he studied viticulture, before commencing work as a pastoralist on his father's property "Werocata" near Balaklava.

[1] His stature in the area led to his election as President of the Balaklava-Dalkey Agricultural Society, Chairman of the Balaklava Racing Club and vice-president of the Farmers and Producers Political Union.

[1] Robinson used this local prominence to good effect by gaining Liberal Union pre-selection for the South Australian House of Assembly Electoral district of Wooroora at the 1915 election.

He surprisingly lost his seat as a Liberal Federation candidate at the 1924 election, when the Labor Party swept to power.

[1] Angry with his perceived poor treatment by the Liberal Federation, Robinson resigned from the party and again ran for Wooroora but as an independent candidate at a by-election in 1934.