[1] Alfred was born in Clifton, Bristol, England to parents Henry George Raymond and Mary Ann (née Hewland), the fifth of eight children.

So the family immigrated to Queensland on the "Duke of Buckingham", arrived at Cooktown on 27 January 1884 and then continued south to Brisbane.

[6] In 1885–86,[7] Alfred was a carpenter and living at Morrison's cottages, Stanley Street on the south side of Brisbane beside the river.

However, there is no proof that these journeys took place, but equally there are no records of Alfred in Brisbane in years immediately after Bessie's death.

[12] The house "Avonmore" burnt down on 4 November 2020 and the Brisbane City Council approved an application to demolish it in June 2021.

He was extremely active in local politics and served on many committees:[16] Raymond unsuccessfully contested the electoral district of Woolloongabba in the 1896 Queensland colonial election.

[17][18] Alfred Raymond stood unsuccessfully for election as mayor of Brisbane City Council in 1924 on behalf of the United Party and the Queensland Women's Electoral League.

[20] Alfred Raymond was involved in promoting Bowkett Societies, where members pooled their funds to make loans to one another based on a lottery system.

The business operated from a number of locations over the years, including near the docks at South Brisbane (close to the Victoria Bridge, now the Flag Court at South Bank Parklands), Holman Street at Kangaroo Point (now Captain Burke Park), and later in Newstead near the Newstead Gasworks.

In 1898, Alfred lost his right hand in an accident at his timber mill[23] and photos taken of him later in life always position him carefully to hide that arm.

It was said to have a hall big enough for a game of children's cricket, could accommodate two live-in servants in addition to the family, and many years later the house was sold and converted into ten flats.

Late in the 20th century, the house was relocated to Pullenvale (and converted back to a family home) so that the now-valuable River Terrace site could be redeveloped (but in 2009 it remains a vacant block.

[28]) Alfred and Jessie experienced many of the sadnesses of parents of this era, losing their youngest child Wilfred to infantile paralysis (polio) and their son Archie to a sniper's bullet in World War I.

The journey also included a visit to son Archie's war grave in the Flat Iron Copse Cemetery, Mametz near Albert, France.

However, many believed that, after Jessie's death, Alfred had become very lonely living on his own in his large house at River Terrace, as his children had by then all married and established their own homes.