Albert George Telfer

Role: Son of John Telfer and Caroline Amelia Masters — brother of Francis Charles Telfer. Farmer at Warcowie then Hill River (near Clare).

Born: 14 November 1881 — Angle Farm, near Hawker, South Australia
Died: November 1970 (gravestone 26 Nov 1970) — Clare, South Australia
Buried: Clare Old Cemetery, Clare, South Australia (with wife Beatrice)
Married: Beatrice Rowe (12 Oct 1877 Kadina – 29 Jun 1951 Clare), at Warcowie
Parents: John Telfer (1847–1929) & Caroline Amelia Telfer (1842–1929) (née Masters)
Brother: Francis Charles Telfer (1875–1954)
Siblings: Ernest John, William James, Walter William, Edwin Gilbert

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Family

Relation	Name
Mother	Caroline Amelia Telfer (1842–1929) (née Masters)
Father	John Telfer (1847–1929)
Spouse	Beatrice Telfer (née Rowe) (12 Oct 1877 – 29 Jun 1951) — m. at Warcowie
Brother	Francis Charles Telfer (1875–1954)
Siblings	Ernest John Telfer, William James Telfer, Walter William Telfer, Edwin Gilbert Telfer
Children	Rita Joyce Telfer (1909–1990), Beatrice Sylvia Telfer (1911–1999), Douglas Ivan Telfer, Melville Bruce Telfer (1914–1997), John Alick Ralph Telfer, Murray Keith (Keith Murray) Telfer (1920–2005)

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Biography

Albert George Telfer was the fifth child of John and Caroline Telfer, born on 14 November 1881 at Angle Farm, near Hawker. His birth came at a time when the family was establishing their home — a well had been sunk providing permanent water for stock and household use, and they were harvesting their fourth crop.

In 1903, when his father purchased the Warcowie homestead, Albert took over its management, beginning a long farming career. His sister Bertha kept house for him there for a few years.

Albert was a farmer with a keen interest in examining new ideas and learning from them. He became a foundation member of the Warcowie Agricultural Bureau and took an active part in its activities.

He married Beatrice Rowe — the Warcowie district school teacher, from Kadina (b. 12 Oct 1877), who boarded with the family for a year or two before being transferred to Moolawurtie. Their children — Rita Joyce, Beatrice Sylvia, Douglas Ivan, Melville Bruce, John Alick Ralph and Murray Keith — were all born while the family lived at Warcowie.

In 1923, Albert bought a farm at Hill River, six miles east of Clare, so that his children could attend the High School there. Farming at Clare, one of the wetter areas of the state, was very different from the drier conditions he had been accustomed to at Hawker. His first crop at Hill River was quite good, but 80 acres were destroyed by a severe hailstorm. Despite such setbacks, Albert and Beatrice built a new life at Clare, and their family grew and prospered there.

Albert died in November 1970 and was buried at Clare Old Cemetery (gravestone: 14 Nov 1881 – 26 Nov 1970), beside his wife Beatrice (12 Oct 1877 – 29 Jun 1951) who predeceased him in 1951.

(From the Borders to the Bush, pp.144–146)

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Family Stories

🖊️ Anecdote — as told in From the Borders to the Bush (book pp. 110–118): Albert was the boy born at Angle Farm, the place named for its awkward, slanted boundaries, and he grew up in the stone house the family finished in 1893 — you can pick him out in the photograph taken out the front when it was brand new. He took after his father as a manager of land: by 1903 he was running Warcowie for the family, and in 1923 he moved across to the Hill River farm and made a life of it there. He stayed with the old country all his days and lies in Clare Old Cemetery, alongside the ground his mother and father are in.

(Anecdote only — family colour, told as the elders tell it. Does not establish any relationship, date or place.)

Sources

• Book: From the Borders to the Bush, pp.144–146 — born 14 Nov 1881 at Angle Farm; Beatrice Rowe (b. 12/10/1877) of Kadina; Warcowie farm then Hill River (near Clare) from 1923; six children named.
• FindAGrave / ozburials Clare Old Cemetery transcription — "TELFER, Beatrice & Albert George"; Albert 14 Nov 1881 – 26 Nov 1970; Beatrice 12 Oct 1877 – 29 Jun 1951.
• headstones2.weebly.com Clare Old Cemetery — "TELFER, Beatrice & Albert George" plot; also TELFER John & Caroline Amelia, John, Beatrice Sylvia, Keith & Marie, Melville Bruce & Violet Merle, Rita Joyce — confirms the Clare family cluster.
• Ancestry index (via web search) — Albert George Telfer, Birth 14 Nov 1881 Hawker SA, Death 30 Nov 1970 Clare SA.

Correction note (2026-08-10): This profile was formerly `Albert George Telfer (1882–1961)` — an auto-generated stub with wrong years. the book From the Borders to the Bush's own family register (p.144) states he was born 14 Nov 1881 (fifth child of John & Caroline). The Clare gravestone and Ancestry index both confirm death 1970, buried Clare. Corrected to 1881–1970. A false "Albert George Telfer (1882–1961)" reference was removed from Clara Blanche Telfer (Tantanoola / John Telfer 1840–1913 branch) — the book records only ONE Albert George Telfer, and he is John & Caroline's son.

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