George  Alexander

ALEXANDER, GEORGE (1837~1913) George Alexander, Confederate veteran, was born in Wilson County, Tennessee in 1837. In 1853, Alexander moved to Texas, but on June 28, 1861, he enrolled in the Confederate Army back in Tennessee. He was mustered into service on September 19 as a 2nd Lieutenant in Company E of the 1st (McNairy's) Battalion of the Tennessee Cavalry. Alexander and his unit moved to Kentucky and confronted the Union Army at Mill Springs (Battle of Fishing Creek) on January 19, 1862. After the defeat at Mill Springs, the Regiment retreated through Tennessee on its way to Corinth, Mississippi, where, along the way, it was defeated in a skirmish with the 4th Ohio Cavalry at McMinnville. Once in Mississippi, the Regiment marched to Booneville, where there was a successful skirmish that resulted in the release of 2,000 sick prisoners and the occupation of the city. After Boonville, McNairy's men, who only numbered 76 and represented three companies, merged into Barteau's 22nd Tennessee Cavalry on June 13, 1862. Alexander apparently did not join the 22nd Cavalry, as his military records show him as a private in Company D of the 8th, also know as the 4th, or Smith's, Tennessee Cavalry.

His enlistment date was recorded as October 25 or December 1, 1862. Throughout the end of the War, the Regiment continued fighting in Tennessee, where they took part in the Battle of Chickamauga. Later they moved to Middle and Eastern Tennessee and then into Georgia, where they took part in the Atlanta Campaign. They continued fighting in Eastern Tennessee and Virginia, and participated in the campaign of the Carolinas, where they, on April 26, 1865, surrendered at a farmhouse, now called Bennett Place, near Durham Station, North Carolina. They were paroled in May 1865, in Macon, Georgia.

After returning to Texas, Alexander settled in Bastrop County, where he was a merchant. A widower and Presbyterian, he moved into the Confederate Men's Home in Austin on May 22, 1910. The Home Board discharged him on January 1, 1913, but Alexander appears to have been readmitted, as he died at the Home on January 8, 1913. He was buried at the Texas State Cemetery the next day.

Information taken from: Military Units of Tennessee Website at http://www.researchonline.net/tncw/unit8.htm and http://www.researchonline.net/tncw/unit52.htm, Compiled Military Service Record, Soldiers Application for Pension # 14625, Confederate Home Roster, and Death Certificate # 2426.