Sanders, born in Kinross, Scotland, migrated with his wife Harriet and three children to Adelaide on the Catherine Jamieson, arriving on 30 November 1838.
[1] He acted as agent for an absentee landlord of a River Murray property, ran Norland Farm, Lyndoch to 1864 then in 1869 acquired an interest in Canowie station, near Hallett, in 1894 restructured as Canowie Pastoral Company.
He also took up a share in Warcowie station, later transferred to sons James and Robert.
He built the residence "Waverly" (later "Waverley"), designed by James Macgeorge.
He left a substantial bequest towards construction of the Unitarian Christian Church building in Wakefield Street.