His father died when he was five years old. Wingate started work in the coal-fields near his home in Cowglen, Renfrewshire when he was nine, and at 17 he was the main breadwinner for his mother and family.
When Wingate's father died at five years old, he started working in the nearby coal mines near Cowglen, Renfrewshire at nine. At seventeen, he became the main financial support for his family.