Alfred Clarke Turnbull

Sir Alfred Clarke Turnbull (14 October 1881 – 17 September 1962) was a New Zealand colonial administrator who served as Administrator of Western Samoa and Tokelau between 1935 and 1946.

Biography Turnbull was born in Balclutha in 1881. He joined the civil service in 1899, initially working in the Lands & Survey Department, before becoming Chief Accountant in 1912 and an inspector in 1915. When he returned from the war, he was appointed secretary to the Public Service Commissioner.

He was posted to Western Samoa in 1930, initially as Government Secretary. In 1935 he was appointed Acting Administrator, succeeding Herbert Ernest Hart. Turnbull was a popular figure in Samoa, and a petition was sent to the New Zealand government requesting his appointment. However, his position was not made permanent until 1943. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1946 New Year Honours.

Following his retirement, Turnbull relocated to the United States where his daughter lived. He died in Stamford Hospital, Connecticut, in 1962.