John O. Alexander

John O. Alexander  Co. I, 26th MO Inf 

John O. Alexander was born in Osage county, Missouri, on March 1, 1838.  He was the fifth of seven children ¹ of Andrew Alexander and Mary G. Glover.  

Andrew Alexander was born April 20, 1807, in Montgomery county, Kentucky, and died July 13, 1844, in Osage county, Missouri.  He married Mary G. Glover February 28, 1828, in Montgomery county, KY.  Mary was born November 10, 1811, in Montgomery county, Kentucky, the daughter of Samuel and Mary "Polly" Glover of Buckingham county, Virginia.  Mary would eventually move to Tacoma, Washington, where she would die on June 13, 1898.  Andrew Alexander was elected as one of the first representatives of Osage county, shortly after it was formed from Gasconade county.

When the Civil war broke out, John did not immediately join the army.  He was the oldest surviving child remaining at home and was needed to tend to the farm and provide support for his widowed mother.  Ultimately, he felt compelled to serve his country and leaving his younger brother Robert behind to support his mother, John enlisted on August 26, 1862.  He joined the 26th Missouri and was assigned to company I.  At the time, John was 5' 10 1/2" tall, and described as having dark colored hair, hazel colored eyes, and a dark complexion.  Unfortunately, like many young men in the army, he was afflicted by ill health and was discharged on May 13, 1863, due to disability.  

John returned home to recover his health.  There he met and married Mary Moran in July 1864.  Mary was born October 9, 1845, to unknown parents.  In 1865, Mary gave birth to a daughter also named Mary B.  As was too often the case in those times, giving birth was too much for the mother, and on October 19, 1865, Mary (the mother) died.  This left John with an infant daughter to raise, so he enlisted the aid of his mother and she joined his household along with his brother Charles.  In 1870, they were living on the family farm near Linnwood, in Benton township, in Osage county ² .  

By 1890, John was living near Mint Hill, in Osage county, Missouri ³ .  No further records are available for John's fate.  

In December 1873, John applied for a veteran's pension, application #188256.

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1890 U. S. Census, Family Quest Archives CDROM, National Archives Microfilm M-123, Roll 29.
Alexander, John O.

Sources:

1. Penny Thiele, p.thiele@worldnet.att.net, MANES/ALEXANDER family researcher, posted on Ancestry.com, genealogical research database, Oct. 31, 2001.

2. Muster Roll Company I, John O. Alexander, Missouri Secretary of State Office,  State Capitol, Room 208 and State Information Center, 600 W. Main, Jefferson City, Missouri.