Wilfred Evans was born at Cooma, New South Wales, on 10 September 1889. After graduating top of his year with a degree in medicine from the University of Sydney in 1914 he practiced for a brief time at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Camperdown. Evans enlisted with the Australian Imperial Force on 29 May 1915. He departed Sydney with other reinforcements for the Australian Army Medical Corps aboard HMAT Karoola on 16 June 1915.

Originally posted to the 1st Australian General Hospital, Evans was soon transferred to the 3rd Light Horse Field Ambulance on Gallipoli. After the evacuation in December he served with the mounted troops until the end of the Middle East campaign. During this time he treated the wounded as the Australian forces moved from Sinai into Palestine and later Transjordan. Evans wrote to his family at home throughout the war, describing the major battles of the campaign and the conditions on service. By the end of the war he had distinguished himself as a brilliant physician and leader. By the end of the war Evans had been promoted to the rank of major and was Mentioned in Despatches on three occasions. He was also awarded the Military Cross for his work in charge of a dressing station dealing with the many wounded from the second battle of Gaza on 19 April 1917.

After returning to Australia in 1919 Evans married and continued to pursue his medical career during the interwar years. He once again joined the medical corps in the Second World War but declined overseas service, instead serving as Assistant Director-General of Medical Services in Melbourne. Wilfred Evans died in Sydney on 20 December 1957 after a brief illness.