Steven Graham Peet, 30, faced an Adelaide court charged with the murder of his partner and her two young children.
Police found the bodies of Adeline Rigney-Wilson, 29, her five-year-old son and six-year-old daughter inside a rural property in Hillier on Monday afternoon.
One of Ms Rigney-Wilson's sisters told reporters at the scene Adeline had only been living with the charged man at the property for the past six weeks.
She described her sister and her children as beautiful.
"She was a strong, black woman," she said.
Peet was taken to the Lyell McEwen Hospital yesterday before being released into police custody, interviewed by detectives and charged with murder.
He wore a blue forensic suit and kept his head bowed during the short hearing.
He has been refused bail to appear in the Elizabeth Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
Barossa Local Service Area officer-in-charge Chief Inspector Alby Quinn said the nature of the crime was very traumatic, but would not detail how they were killed.
"This does appear to be domestic-related and we are not looking for any other further persons in relation to this incident," he said.
-With AAP
