Wilson belonged to a mercantile firm in the city of London, and was a regular attendant at Hutchins's auction-rooms, where he was detected on one occasion abstracting prints.
[2] In 1793, stimulated by the increased demand for prints consequent on the publication of James Granger's Biographical History of England (1769), Wilson, under the name of Henry Bromley, published A Catalogue of Engraved British Portraits (London, 4to).
He received assistance in the compilation from many leading antiquaries and virtuosi, including Sir William Musgrave, James Bindley, and Anthony Morris Storer.
In the Catalogue Wilson aimed at furnishing a complete list of engraved British portraits, neglecting only those which could not be identified with their originals.
He divided his list into historic periods, and subdivided it into groups according to the rank or calling of the persons portrayed.