The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.
Birth: 28 Feb 1756 Staunton / Augusta / VA Death: 03 Mar 1832 Fincastle / Brown / OH
Qualifying Service Description:
He served as a Private in the company of Captain Francis Long of the Augusta County, Virginia Militia.
Sergeant in Lee's Legion, Continental Dragoons
Additional References:
Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War. Micropublication M881, roll 1055. Washington: National Archives.
Gwathmey, John H., Historical Register of Virginians in the Revolution: Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, 1775-1783, Virginia. Richmond: Dietz Press, 1938, pg 7
Official roster III: Soldiers of the American Revolution who lived in the State of Ohio. Wilbur R. Branthoover, compiler. Veterans Affairs, Ohio. Reprinted by the Ohio Society Daughters of the American Revolution (OHSDAR). 1959
Spouse: Jennet Alexander Children: John; Hannah; Hugh; William;
Members Who Share This Ancestor
None*
*This means that the NSSAR has no applications for this Patriot on file.
Instead the information provided is best effort, and from volunteers who have either researched grave sites, service records, or something similar. There is no documentation available at NSSAR HQ to order.
The following biography has been augmented by PRS staff.
John Alexander was born on 28 February 1756 in Staunton, Augusta County, Virginia.
There are multiple men of the same name who potentially served from Virginia during the Revolutionary War, including one man who died in Kentucky and whose son applied for his bounty land. A 1914 note from the US Adjutant General states that John Alexander, with the rank of Sergeant in Lee’s Legion of the Continental Troops. He goes on to say that his name appears in the rolls of Captain James Knox of the 8th Virginia Regiment for 1777. A note on the records states he left sick in North Carolina on 26 May 1777. Later that summer, his name appears on the rolls as a Private in the company of Captain John Hay of the 9th Virginia, commanded by Colonel George Matthews. Finally, there is also a record for John Alexander serving as a Private in the company of Captain Robert Beall of the 9th Regiment. He enrolled on 3 May 1779 for a term of eighteen months. It would be helpful to research these companies to know which counties they pulled from to better understand it all this service belongs to the subject of the biography. The DAR credits him only with the service as a Private in the company of Captain Long of Augusta County, which isn’t mentioned by the Adjutant.
He married Jennet Alexander on 10 March 1790 in Augusta County, Virginia. Among their known children were:
John Jr was born on 2 October 1796 and married Delilah Shreves.
Hannah L. was born on 16 March 1807 and married Jesse Cross.
There is a deed dated 19 September 1818 in Brown County, Ohio, by John Alexander Sr and his wife, Jennett, to John Alexander Jr. for a piece of property along Brush Creek, being part of the 1,000-acre tract entered from a Military Warrant, number 2287. On that same day, a second deed was done between John Alexander Sr. and his wife, Jennett, to Francis Alexander for another piece of the same land mentioned above, in equal size to that of John Jr.
John and Jennett entered another deed on 24 January 1824 to Andrew Alexander. On 13 July 1828, another deed was entered by John and Jennett Alexander to William Alexander.
We can’t positively say that John Jr., Francis, Andrew, and William are the offspring of John and Jennett; further research would likely find the probable relationship.
The Patriot died on 3 March 1832 in Fincastle, Brown County, Ohio, and was buried at the Arel Cemetery.
Sources:
Official roster III: Soldiers of the American Revolution who lived in the State of Ohio. Wilbur R. Branthoover, compiler. Veterans Affairs, Ohio. Reprinted by the Ohio Society Daughters of the American Revolution (OHSDAR), 1959.
SAR Ancestor # P-102362.
Send a biographical sketch of your patriot!
Patriot biographies must be the original work of the author, and work submitted must not belong to another person or group, in observance with copyright law. Patriot biographies are to be written in complete sentences, follow the established rules of grammar, syntax and punctuation, be free of typographical errors, and follow a narrative format. The narrative should unfold in a logical manner (e.g. the narrative does not jump from time period to time period) or have repeated digressions, or tell the history of the patriot's line from the patriot ancestor to the author. The thinking here is that this is a patriot biography, not a lineage report or a kinship determination project or other report published in a genealogy journal. The biography should discuss the qualifying service (military, patriotic, civil) of the patriot ancestor, where the service was rendered, whether this was a specific state or Continental service, as well as significant events (as determined by the author) of the patriot's life. This is the entire purpose of a patriot's biography.
Additional guidelines around the Biography writeup can be found here:
Send your submission1, in a Microsoft Word compatible format, to patriotbios@sar.org for inclusion in this space 1Upon submission of a patriot biography, the patriot biography becomes the property of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and may be edited to conform to the patriot biography submission standards.