Susan Burton Telfer

Born: 1844 | Died: 5 Oct 1924 | Spouse: Robert Telfer (1835–1907)

Family

Life Summary

Susan Burton married Robert Telfer and settled in the Mount Gambier district of South Australia. Her husband Robert worked as stock manager at Moorak, one of the large pastoral estates near Mount Gambier. When Dr. Browne subdivided the Woodlands estate, Robert purchased a farm there and the family moved to that property at Yahl, near Mount Gambier.

They raised seven children — three sons and four daughters. Susan was widowed in 1907 when Robert died, but she continued living on the Woodlands property until her death.

Her obituary in the Border Watch (Mount Gambier, 7 Oct 1924) described her as "another old and highly respected resident of this district." The funeral was conducted by Rev. A. H. Ballinger, with Mr. W. Pearce carrying out the arrangements.

Timeline

Newspaper References

"MRS. S. TELFER" — Border Watch, Mount Gambier, 7 October 1924

Another old and highly respected resident of this district in the person of Mrs. Susan Telfer, of Yahl, passed away on Sunday last. The deceased lady was the wife of the late Mr. Robert Telfer, who for many years was employed on Moorak as stock manager. When Dr. Browne cut up Woodlands Mr. Telfer purchased a farm there and when he retired from Moorak he went there to reside with his family. Mr. Telfer died several years ago, but Mrs. Telfer continued to reside on the property until her death. Mrs. Telfer had a family of seven—three sons and four daughters. The sons are Messrs. Jas., Mount Gambier; W., Yahl; and Robert, N.S.W. The daughters are Mesdames George B. Renfrey, St. Kilda; Rowbotham, North Adelaide; and the Misses S. and E. Telfer. There are several grandchildren. The funeral was held this afternoon, the Rev. A. H. Ballinger conducted the service, and Mr. W. Pearce carried out the funeral arrangements.

Source: Trove – Border Watch, 7 Oct 1924 — accessed 9 June 2026

Sources

• FindAGrave – Susan Burton Telfer (1844–1924) — accessed 26 May 2026 (shows 7 Oct 1924; paper-date artefact per note below)
• Trove – "MRS. S. TELFER" obituary, Border Watch, 7 Oct 1924 — accessed 9 June 2026; wording "passed away on Sunday last" = 5 Oct
• MyHeritage – Susie Telfer (Lake Terrace Cemetery, Mount Gambier) — "passed away on October 5 1924", buried Lake Terrace Cemetery Mount Gambier — accessed 5 Sep 2026
• Genealogy SA Death Registrations – TELFER Susan, F, 1924, district Grey, Book 473/Page 458 — accessed 5 Sep 2026
• City of Mount Gambier – Lake Terrace Cemetery register (OFFICIAL PRIMARY): TELFER SUSAN · Section E, Plot 531 · Last Residence Yahl · Date of Death 05-10-1924 · Age 80 · Date of Interment 07-10-1924. URLs: https://www.mountgambier.sa.gov.au/cemeteries/telfer-susan — accessed 7 Sep 2026. This official register is the decisive primary confirming the death date refined on 5 Sep: 5 Oct 1924 (interment 7 Oct; the "7 Oct" on FindAGrave is the interment/paper date). The RootsWeb "2 Oct 1923" is a user-tree copy error, corroborated wrong on both year and day — dropped permanently.