Born on January 11, 1870, in Falmouth, Maine, Wilson attended the University of Pennsylvania and then received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1892 from Bates College.

He read law in 1895,[1] under the supervision of Joseph W. Symonds,[2] and entered private practice in Portland, Maine from 1895 to 1918.

[1] Wilson was nominated by President Herbert Hoover on September 9, 1929, to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit vacated by Judge Charles Fletcher Johnson.

He was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 2, 1929, and received his commission the same day.

His service terminated on October 22, 1942, due to his death in Portland.