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Transcribed from "An Illustrated History of The Big Bend Country, embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams and Franklin counties, State of Washington",  published by Western Historical Publishing Co., 1904.

     ROBERT TELFORD, a farmer residing one mile south and a quarter of a mile west of Rocklyn, Washington, was born in Roxburgshire, Scotland, on the old Telford homestead, which was also the birth place of his fathers for many generations.  The date of Mr. Telford's birth was March 24, 1852.  His father was Maxwell Telford, whose father lacked only a few months of being a centenarian at the time of his death.  Our subject's mother was Grace Douglas (Hall) Telford, who was named after Grace Douglas, the last of the clan of Black Douglas, a familiar clan of fighters in Scotch history.  She was a daughter of the noted Robert Hall, of Scotland, and her mother was at one time lady's maid to Grace Douglas.
    Robert Telford is a member of a family originally comprising seven children, only four of whom are now living: Mrs. Ellen Winthrop, living in New Zealand;  Robert; Maxwell, in Oregon, and Joseph, in California.
     Mr. Telford, until eighteen years of age, attended the parish school in his native country, and in 1870 he came to the United States with his parents, settling at Great Falls, New Hampshire. From there he went to Boston where he ran a stationary engine, and in 1880 went to Pembina county, North Dakota, and filed on a homestead. Previous to this, however, he spent five years in Canada, and while there was married, December 26, 1877, to Jane Crawford, who died in Dakota on March 19, 1887, leaving the husband and two children, Maxwell H., and John C., both living near the home of our subject. Maxwell has since been married to Barbara McCully.
     Mr. Telford was married a second time, to Ellen Melville, a native of Glasgow, Scotland, and daughter of Adam and Isabella (Ferguson) Melville. The father is dead, and the mother is living at the age of seventy in North Dakota. Mrs. Telford is the eldest of a family of twelve children, eleven of whom are still living.
     Mr. Telford's parents removed from New Hampshire to North Dakota, and from there to Oregon City, Oregon, where the father died four years ago at the age of ninety-nine years, seven months and three days. The mother is still living there, aged ninety-eight years.
     From North Dakota, Mr. Telford removed to Puget Sound, where he divided his time among different points, and in 1898 he came to his present locality where he purchased a farm of 320 acres, all good land, and all now fenced and well improved. He has plenty of stock and farm implements and makes a specialty of grain raising.
     Mr. Telford is a member of the Foresters, and his wife of the Royal Highlanders. They have four children, William Wallace, Grace Douglas, Maggie M. and Ellen Isabella.
 

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