A special tribute was paid to the founder of Alexandria Friday morning.
A large framed photograph of Daniel Alexander was placed on permanent display at the Alexandria Public Library. It was recently donated to the library by Alexander’s great great great grandson, Paul Randy Alexander, Jr. of Charlotte, North Carolina.
DeKalb County Historian Thomas G. Webb hosted the observance and was joined by librarians, library board members, and local public officials.
In an historical account of Alexander and the birth of the town, Webb wrote that “The founder of Alexandria, DeKalb County’s second oldest town, was Daniel Alexander, who named the town for himself. Daniel Alexander was born on January 23, 1773 in Maryland, son of James Alexander. He married on August 14, 1800, in Charlotte, Mecklenberg County, North Carolina, his cousin Sarah (Sallie) Alexander, daughter of David Alexander. They moved immediately to Tennessee, where they built and operated for several years a log tavern and inn on the Walton Road near present day Algood, Tennessee. By 1806, he owned a large tract of land on Hickman Creek in Smith County, and on April 15, 1820, Daniel Alexander divided that land into 24 lots, each 66 feet wide and 165 feet long. He reserved for himself lots 1, 2, and 3 (where Alton and Grace Close recently lived). That lot had on it a log two-story house, with a fine spring of water behind it which is still running. The business district was approximately where it is now. Daniel Alexander later moved to Rutherford County, where he died on October 20, 1857. He and his wife are buried near Christiana, Tennessee.
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