Joseph Telfener (1836-1898)

In 1877, he was created a Count by Victor Emmanuel II for his achievements as an engineer. Born at Naples, he married his wife in Rome, 1879. His father-in-law tipped him off about the opportunities for building railroads in Texas, so he came to America where he adopted the name "Joseph". He already had experience in the railroad industry having financed railroads in South America. He and his father-in-law, Daniel Hungerford, planned a railroad that would link New York to Mexico City, financed by his wife's brother-in-law, John W. Mackay. It was only partially completed before being soldo. Nonetheless, the towns (Telferner, Hungerford etc.) that they established along the line still exist today. They had leased a mansion in Victoria, Texas, and owned the estate "Villa Ada" in Rome that from 1946 was the residence of the deposed Italian Royal family.