Alfred Robert Small

Alfred Robert Small was born in 1874 and started his working life on his father's property working with both sheep and horses. He became a proficient shearer and the knowledge gained at this time was to stand him in good stead later in life. He undertook the task of taking a load of horses to Bombay and later on he also took a load to South Africa. After he delivered the shipment of horses in South Africa he decided to stay there and fight in the Boer War. He joined the Natal Police Regiment as a trooper as he thought they had the nicest uniforms. During this campaign he was awarded the Queen Victoria Medal. After the Boer War he returned home and decided to join the police force. His first posting was to Sunny Corner where he met his bride to be, Catherine Murray. Alfred Small had various postings including Molong, Windeyer (his first station in charge), Hargraves, Trangie, Berrima and Narromine. His speciality was dealing with sheep stealing and he performed very valuable work in relation to earmarking of sheep as a means of reducing their theft. He rose to the rank of Inspector of Police.