Barton S. Alexander
Encyclopedia
Barton Stone Alexander was an American engineer commander during the American Civil War
who rose to the brevet
rank of brigadier general in the regular army. He was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy
at West Point and served in the United States Army
's Corps of Topographical Engineers
, which at times was both a part of and separate from the United States Army Corps of Engineers
. After graduating from West Point as a second lieutenant in the Class of 1842, he served in the Mexican-American War, building fortifications to protect American supply lines in the advance on Mexico City
. After the end of the war, he was stationed in Washington, D.C.
, where he served as architect for the Scott Building and Quarters Buildings at the U.S. Soldiers' Home and took over the completion of the Smithsonian Institution Building
after dissatisfaction with the pace of the first architect caused him to be dismissed.
After the completion of the Smithsonian in 1855, he traveled to New England, where he supervised the rebuilding of the Minot's Ledge Light
house, a project widely considered to be one of the most difficult to be attempted by the U.S. Government up to that time.
During the American Civil War, he served as an advisor to the Engineering Brigade of the Army of the Potomac
and became chief engineer of the defenses of Washington, D.C. Following the conclusion of hostilities, he served as chief engineer of the Military Division of the Pacific, making him the head engineer for every military construction project on the West Coast. In later years, he persuaded the U.S. government to acquire Pearl Harbor
from the Kingdom of Hawaii
and supervised numerous irrigation and land reclamation projects in California
's central valley. He died on December 15, 1878, in San Francisco, California
.
, He entered West Point in the fall of 1838. Alexander was a diligent student, and corrected an entering weakness in mathematics to graduate seventh of 56 cadets in the Class of 1842. Between 1843 and 1848, he worked on several fortification projects along the East Coast of the United States, including Forts Pulaski, Jackson
, and the defenses of New York City
. In 1848, he participated in the Mexican-American War as a second lieutenant of engineers, helping build defenses to protect American supply lines as Winfield Scott
's army advanced on Mexico City
. After the conclusion of the war, now-First Lieutenant Alexander returned to West Point for a four-year assignment as Treasurer and Superintending Engineer for the Cadets' Barracks and Mess Hall. In 1852, Alexander was assigned to Washington, D.C.
, where he assisted in the design and construction of several government buildings.
The first of these was the Scott Building of the U.S. Soldiers' Home, now known as the Armed Forces Retirement Home
. The building was named for General Winfield Scott, who donated $100,000 for the establishment of the Soldiers' Home in 1851. It served as the central focus of the complex, and still stands today. Constructed in the Romanesque Revival style, the Scott Building features a round-arched motif utilizing white Vermont
marble
.
At the same time as his work on the Scott Building, Alexander was asked to take up the challenge of completing the Smithsonian Institution Building
, the progress of which had bogged down under architect James Renwick, Jr.
In August 1853, Alexander accepted, and by 1855, the Smithsonian Building was complete. During construction, Alexander slightly altered Renwick's original design by placing the Smithsonian's main lecture hall on the second floor. The change allowed for superior acoustics and a wider space than could be found on the first floor. To support the large lecture hall and the central core of the building, Alexander arranged for the installation of fireproof masonry
-encased iron
structural column
s. These would prove their value on January 24, 1865, when a fire broke out on the roof above the lecture hall. The resulting blaze destroyed the hall and damaged much of the rest of the structure. Thanks to the fireproof columns, however, the Smithsonian building did not collapse.
Following his work on the Smithsonian, but before the Scott Building finished construction, Alexander traveled to New England
, where he was assigned to a project at the entrance of Boston harbor. That project, the rebuilding of Minot's Ledge Light
house, was widely considered to be one of the most difficult to be attempted by the U.S. Government up to that time. Designed by Brigadier General Joseph Totten, head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the lighthouse was intended to replace a structure that had been destroyed in an 1851 storm. With multiple ships wrecking on the ledge annually, the need for a lighthouse was crucial. Appointed superintendent of the lighthouse construction in April 1855, newly-promoted Captain Alexander modified Totten's design in accordance with conditions at the site. Because the site of the lighthouse was continually awash, except at low tide and calm seas, the work of preparing the interlocking granite blocks and iron framework of the lighthouse was done at nearby Government Island, adjacent to Cohasset, Massachusetts
.
The work progressed slowly, hampered by the partially submerged nature of the site, violent storms that wracked the area, and the fact that preparatory work had to be done away from the building site. During construction, a particularly violent storm hit the construction site, sweeping away much of the iron framework intended to support the stone shell of the lighthouse. Captain Alexander was discouraged, reportedly saying, "If wrought iron won't stand it, I have my fears about a stone tower." Those fears were allayed when news reached Alexander that the damage had been due to a ship striking the lighthouse, rather than from just the storm alone. Work recommenced on building the lighthouse, and the final stone was laid on June 29, 1860, five years after Alexander and his workmen first landed at the ledge. The final cost of about $300,000 made it one of the most expensive lighthouses in United States history.
and the Confederate state of Virginia
. In July 1861, the force that had marched into northern Virginia on May 24 found itself opposed by a large Confederate States Army
force that had marched up from the south. In the haste to meet the Confederates in battle, Alexander found himself serving as an infantry officer and was assigned to the 1st Division of the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under the command of Brig. Gen. Daniel Tyler
. It was a situation common to the young Union Army, which found itself short of experienced officers. Many engineer officers building defenses south of Washington were assigned to a regiment or division during the First Battle of Bull Run
. Alexander received a brevet to major
in the regular army for his service during the battle.
, under the direction of its new commander, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan
, expanded and improved the improvised defenses that had been built in the seven weeks between the occupation of Northern Virginia and the Battle of Bull Run. New regiments arrived in Washington daily, and were placed in camps in and around the city. Two of these new arrivals—the 15th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment and the 50th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment—were designated "engineer regiments" and placed under the superintendence of Lt. Col. Alexander. Following a brief training period under Alexander, the two regiments were declared to be an "Engineering Brigade" and placed under the command of Brig. Gen. Daniel P. Woodbury. Woodbury's brigade was itself under the command of Brig. Gen. John G. Barnard
, chief engineer of the Army of the Potomac. Alexander remained attached to the Engineering Brigade as an assistant.
Alexander continued in this role during the Engineering Brigade's deployment with the Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula Campaign
, several times performing ably under hostile fire. He was appointed a brevet lieutenant colonel
for his service at the Siege of Yorktown
, as of May 4, 1862. Following the abandonment of the campaign and the return of the Army of the Potomac to northern Virginia, General Barnard, now chief engineer of defenses of Washington, D.C., requested Alexander serve as his aide-de-camp
. Alexander accepted and served in that capacity throughout 1862. When the Topographical Engineers and the Army Corps of Engineers were merged on March 3, 1863, Alexander (whose permanent U.S. Army rank was captain until this time) was promoted to major, while retaining his brevet (honorary) rank of lieutenant colonel.
In August 1863, as part of his duties as aide-de-camp to General Barnard, Alexander was named as a member of a board of military officers who would examine the defenses of Washington and suggest improvements as needed. The board, created by the Secretary of War
, Edwin M. Stanton
, was designed to replace a civilian board that he had created in 1862. In a November 1863 meeting, this board recommended final allotments of guns and ammunition for the forts protecting Washington, D.C., thus establishing the number of guns that would be in place during the Battle of Fort Stevens
eight months later.
Ulysses S. Grant
. This move made Alexander the chief engineer for the defenses of Washington, filling the position vacated by Barnard's departure. It was a role he would take until well after the surrender of Robert E. Lee
's Army of Northern Virginia
on April 9, 1865. The appointment was largely a caretaker role, as the final number of guns and forts had been established by the 1863 commission, and the Union Army's success in the field meant that no major force could threaten Washington. The only exception to this came in late July 1864, when Confederate forces under the command of Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early attacked Washington's defenses from the north during the Battle of Fort Stevens
.
Following the conclusion of the war, Alexander presided over the drawdown in U.S. Army forces in Washington and the gradual decommissioning of the forts surrounding the city. On May 9, 1865, Alexander was ordered to stop work maintaining and improving the forts surrounding Washington as part of cost-cutting measures. Alexander, not wishing to see Washington return to its defenseless pre-war state, recommended that some forts be continually maintained in order to preserve them for future needs. The recommendations were accepted, but Alexander's ability to follow through on them was limited by an August order to "not incur expenses for hired labor" and the inability of the chief engineer of the District of Washington to furnish the large numbers of enlisted men needed to continue the upkeep.
By January 1866, no funds were available even to keep Alexander's offices open, and on January 13, 1866, he declared, "... I closed up my office here, as far as it is possible to close it, before leaving ...". By July 14, 1866, all of the outstanding debts of the office of the defenses of Washington were paid off in full and its work was fully completed.
As was common for many senior officers at the end of the war, Alexander was honored with a brevet rank of brigadier general in the regular army, effective March 13, 1865. Following his closure of the offices of the defenses of Washington, D.C., he was briefly ordered to New England, where he supervised the renovation of various minor fortifications and river improvements in Maine. That posting came to an end on January 7, 1867, when he was ordered to the West Coast as the chief U.S. Army engineer in the region. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on March 7, 1867.
As chief engineer to the Military Division of the Pacific, he was the top U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officer on the entire American Pacific Coast. Upon his arrival on the West Coast, he visited locations from Alaska
to the Mexican
border in order to analyze the work that would be needed. Between 1868 and 1870, he surveyed numerous California harbors and made engineering suggestions as required. One of these suggestions resulted in the construction of a 7,000-foot breakwater
that made Long Beach
harbor accessible to large amounts of shipping for the first time. In 1870, he suggested that landowners near Colusa, California
, construct levees to contain the Sacramento River within a single channel. The plan would reclaim swampland and control the river's annual floods, making large-scale farming possible. The plan was eagerly seized upon by local residents.
In the spring of 1872, Col. Alexander and Maj. Gen. John M. Schofield, commander of the Military Division of the Pacific
, sailed from San Francisco, California
, to Honolulu in the then-independent Kingdom of Hawaii
on a secret mission to evaluate Hawaii's ports in terms of defensive capabilities and commercial facilities. Fellow civil war veteran Alfred S. Hartwell
was their host, who was on the kingdom's supreme court at the time. They recognized the great potential of Pearl Harbor
as a "harbor of refuge in time of war," and on May 8, 1873, recommended that the War Department acquire the harbor. Their suggestion resulted in the signing of the reciprocity Treaty of 1875
between the United States and Hawaii. As part of the treaty, Hawaii ceded the area of Pearl Harbor to the United States in return for trade agreements benefiting Hawaiian sugar planters. The treaty was signed on September 8, 1876, helping pave the way for eventual American annexation of the Kingdom.
, Tulare Valley, and Sacramento Valley
. The board, which became known as the Alexander Commission, conducted a survey of the California Central Valley
throughout the summer and fall of 1873. The Commission's report declared that large-scale irrigation was possible and that much land could be reclaimed from the swamps around the Sacramento River
. The report was not initially acted upon, but was the first professional survey of the valley and set the stage for further development.
In 1874 and 1875, Alexander was assigned to a board examining the problem of keeping the Mississippi River Delta
from silt
ing up and becoming an impediment to ship traffic. During the course of his tenure on the board, he traveled to Europe in order to examine European solutions to the problem. At the end of 1875, Alexander was asked by the state government of California to examine a proposed irrigation project in the San Joaquin Valley. Busy with other projects, Alexander appointed an associate, William Hammond Hall
, to head the project.
Alexander died in San Francisco, California
, on December 15, 1878, at the age of 59. He was buried in the San Francisco National Cemetery.
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
who rose to the brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
rank of brigadier general in the regular army. He was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
at West Point and served in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
's Corps of Topographical Engineers
Corps of Topographical Engineers
The U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers, was separately authorized on 4 July 1838, consisted only of officers, and was used for mapping and the design and construction of federal civil works such as lighthouses and other coastal fortifications and navigational routes. It included such...
, which at times was both a part of and separate from the United States Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
. After graduating from West Point as a second lieutenant in the Class of 1842, he served in the Mexican-American War, building fortifications to protect American supply lines in the advance on Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
. After the end of the war, he was stationed in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where he served as architect for the Scott Building and Quarters Buildings at the U.S. Soldiers' Home and took over the completion of the Smithsonian Institution Building
Smithsonian Institution Building
The Smithsonian Castle, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. behind the National Museum of African Art, houses the Smithsonian Institution's administrative offices and information center...
after dissatisfaction with the pace of the first architect caused him to be dismissed.
After the completion of the Smithsonian in 1855, he traveled to New England, where he supervised the rebuilding of the Minot's Ledge Light
Minot's Ledge Light
Minot's Ledge Light, officially Minots Ledge Light, is a lighthouse on Minot's Ledge, one mile offshore of the towns of Cohasset and Scituate, Massachusetts, to the southeast of Boston Harbor The current lighthouse is the second on the site, the first having been washed away in a storm after only...
house, a project widely considered to be one of the most difficult to be attempted by the U.S. Government up to that time.
During the American Civil War, he served as an advisor to the Engineering Brigade of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
and became chief engineer of the defenses of Washington, D.C. Following the conclusion of hostilities, he served as chief engineer of the Military Division of the Pacific, making him the head engineer for every military construction project on the West Coast. In later years, he persuaded the U.S. government to acquire Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
from the Kingdom of Hawaii
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...
and supervised numerous irrigation and land reclamation projects in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's central valley. He died on December 15, 1878, in San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Pre-Civil War
Alexander was born in Nicholas County, KentuckyNicholas County, Kentucky
Nicholas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 6,813. Its county seat is Carlisle. The county is named for George Nicholas, the "Father of the Kentucky Constitution".- Geography :...
, He entered West Point in the fall of 1838. Alexander was a diligent student, and corrected an entering weakness in mathematics to graduate seventh of 56 cadets in the Class of 1842. Between 1843 and 1848, he worked on several fortification projects along the East Coast of the United States, including Forts Pulaski, Jackson
Fort Jackson, Louisiana
Fort Jackson is a decommissioned masonry fort located some up river from the mouth of the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. It was constructed as a coastal defense of New Orleans between 1822 and 1832, and was a battle site in the American Civil War. It is a National Historic...
, and the defenses of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. In 1848, he participated in the Mexican-American War as a second lieutenant of engineers, helping build defenses to protect American supply lines as Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott was a United States Army general, and unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Whig Party in 1852....
's army advanced on Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
. After the conclusion of the war, now-First Lieutenant Alexander returned to West Point for a four-year assignment as Treasurer and Superintending Engineer for the Cadets' Barracks and Mess Hall. In 1852, Alexander was assigned to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where he assisted in the design and construction of several government buildings.
The first of these was the Scott Building of the U.S. Soldiers' Home, now known as the Armed Forces Retirement Home
Armed Forces Retirement Home
The Armed Forces Retirement Home , formerly the U.S. Soldiers' and Airmen's Home, the U.S. Soldiers' Home, and the U.S. Military Asylum, is an independent establishment in the executive branch of the federal government of the United States...
. The building was named for General Winfield Scott, who donated $100,000 for the establishment of the Soldiers' Home in 1851. It served as the central focus of the complex, and still stands today. Constructed in the Romanesque Revival style, the Scott Building features a round-arched motif utilizing white Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
.
Smithsonian Institution Building
The Smithsonian Castle, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. behind the National Museum of African Art, houses the Smithsonian Institution's administrative offices and information center...
, the progress of which had bogged down under architect James Renwick, Jr.
James Renwick, Jr.
James Renwick, Jr. , was a prominent American architect in the 19th-century. The Encyclopedia of American Architecture calls him "one of the most successful American architects of his time".-Life and work:Renwick was born into a wealthy and well-educated family...
In August 1853, Alexander accepted, and by 1855, the Smithsonian Building was complete. During construction, Alexander slightly altered Renwick's original design by placing the Smithsonian's main lecture hall on the second floor. The change allowed for superior acoustics and a wider space than could be found on the first floor. To support the large lecture hall and the central core of the building, Alexander arranged for the installation of fireproof masonry
Masonry
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar; the term masonry can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are brick, stone, marble, granite, travertine, limestone; concrete block, glass block, stucco, and...
-encased iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
structural column
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
s. These would prove their value on January 24, 1865, when a fire broke out on the roof above the lecture hall. The resulting blaze destroyed the hall and damaged much of the rest of the structure. Thanks to the fireproof columns, however, the Smithsonian building did not collapse.
Minot's Ledge Lighthouse
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, where he was assigned to a project at the entrance of Boston harbor. That project, the rebuilding of Minot's Ledge Light
Minot's Ledge Light
Minot's Ledge Light, officially Minots Ledge Light, is a lighthouse on Minot's Ledge, one mile offshore of the towns of Cohasset and Scituate, Massachusetts, to the southeast of Boston Harbor The current lighthouse is the second on the site, the first having been washed away in a storm after only...
house, was widely considered to be one of the most difficult to be attempted by the U.S. Government up to that time. Designed by Brigadier General Joseph Totten, head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the lighthouse was intended to replace a structure that had been destroyed in an 1851 storm. With multiple ships wrecking on the ledge annually, the need for a lighthouse was crucial. Appointed superintendent of the lighthouse construction in April 1855, newly-promoted Captain Alexander modified Totten's design in accordance with conditions at the site. Because the site of the lighthouse was continually awash, except at low tide and calm seas, the work of preparing the interlocking granite blocks and iron framework of the lighthouse was done at nearby Government Island, adjacent to Cohasset, Massachusetts
Cohasset, Massachusetts
Cohasset is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, though it is not contiguous with the main body of the county. The population was 7,542 at the 2010 census.- History :...
.
The work progressed slowly, hampered by the partially submerged nature of the site, violent storms that wracked the area, and the fact that preparatory work had to be done away from the building site. During construction, a particularly violent storm hit the construction site, sweeping away much of the iron framework intended to support the stone shell of the lighthouse. Captain Alexander was discouraged, reportedly saying, "If wrought iron won't stand it, I have my fears about a stone tower." Those fears were allayed when news reached Alexander that the damage had been due to a ship striking the lighthouse, rather than from just the storm alone. Work recommenced on building the lighthouse, and the final stone was laid on June 29, 1860, five years after Alexander and his workmen first landed at the ledge. The final cost of about $300,000 made it one of the most expensive lighthouses in United States history.
Civil War
Following the completion of the Minot's Ledge Lighthouse project in 1860, the secession of South Carolina and the beginning of the American Civil War allowed Alexander to put his skills to military use for the first time since the Mexican-American War. On May 24, 1861, he was among several hundred engineers who marched into Virginia to begin building fortifications to protect Washington, D.C., which was located on the border between the Union state of MarylandMaryland in the Civil War
In the American Civil War, Maryland, a slave state, was one of the border states, straddling the North and South. Due to its location and a desire from both opposing factions to sway its population to their respective causes, Maryland played an important role in the American Civil War...
and the Confederate state of Virginia
Virginia in the Civil War
The Commonwealth of Virginia was a prominent part of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. The convention called to act for the state during the secession crisis opened on February 13, 1861, after seven seceding states had formed the Confederacy on February 4. Unionist...
. In July 1861, the force that had marched into northern Virginia on May 24 found itself opposed by a large Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
force that had marched up from the south. In the haste to meet the Confederates in battle, Alexander found himself serving as an infantry officer and was assigned to the 1st Division of the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under the command of Brig. Gen. Daniel Tyler
Daniel Tyler
Daniel Tyler was an iron manufacturer, railroad president, and one of the first generals of the American Civil War.-Biography:...
. It was a situation common to the young Union Army, which found itself short of experienced officers. Many engineer officers building defenses south of Washington were assigned to a regiment or division during the First Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run, also known as First Manassas , was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, near the City of Manassas...
. Alexander received a brevet to major
Major (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
in the regular army for his service during the battle.
Engineering Brigade
Following the defeat at Bull Run, the Union Army retreated back to the defenses of Washington. Throughout the remainder of 1861, the newly named Army of the PotomacArmy of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
, under the direction of its new commander, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
, expanded and improved the improvised defenses that had been built in the seven weeks between the occupation of Northern Virginia and the Battle of Bull Run. New regiments arrived in Washington daily, and were placed in camps in and around the city. Two of these new arrivals—the 15th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment and the 50th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment—were designated "engineer regiments" and placed under the superintendence of Lt. Col. Alexander. Following a brief training period under Alexander, the two regiments were declared to be an "Engineering Brigade" and placed under the command of Brig. Gen. Daniel P. Woodbury. Woodbury's brigade was itself under the command of Brig. Gen. John G. Barnard
John G. Barnard
John Gross Barnard was a career engineering officer in the U.S. Army, serving in the Mexican-American War, as the Superintendent of the United States Military Academy and as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War...
, chief engineer of the Army of the Potomac. Alexander remained attached to the Engineering Brigade as an assistant.
Alexander continued in this role during the Engineering Brigade's deployment with the Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
, several times performing ably under hostile fire. He was appointed a brevet lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
for his service at the Siege of Yorktown
Battle of Yorktown (1862)
The Battle of Yorktown or Siege of Yorktown was fought from April 5 to May 4, 1862, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. Marching from Fort Monroe, Union Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac encountered Maj. Gen. John B. Magruder's small Confederate force...
, as of May 4, 1862. Following the abandonment of the campaign and the return of the Army of the Potomac to northern Virginia, General Barnard, now chief engineer of defenses of Washington, D.C., requested Alexander serve as his aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
. Alexander accepted and served in that capacity throughout 1862. When the Topographical Engineers and the Army Corps of Engineers were merged on March 3, 1863, Alexander (whose permanent U.S. Army rank was captain until this time) was promoted to major, while retaining his brevet (honorary) rank of lieutenant colonel.
United States Secretary of War
The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...
, Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin McMasters Stanton was an American lawyer and politician who served as Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during the American Civil War from 1862–1865...
, was designed to replace a civilian board that he had created in 1862. In a November 1863 meeting, this board recommended final allotments of guns and ammunition for the forts protecting Washington, D.C., thus establishing the number of guns that would be in place during the Battle of Fort Stevens
Battle of Fort Stevens
The Battle of Fort Stevens was an American Civil War battle fought July 11–12, 1864, in Northwest Washington, D.C., as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 between forces under Confederate Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early and Union Maj. Gen. Alexander McD. McCook. Although Early caused consternation...
eight months later.
Defenses of Washington, D.C.
On June 1, 1864, General Barnard was named the chief engineer of the Armies in the Field by Lt. Gen.Lieutenant General (United States)
In the United States Army, the United States Air Force and the United States Marine Corps, lieutenant general is a three-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-9. Lieutenant general ranks above major general and below general...
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
. This move made Alexander the chief engineer for the defenses of Washington, filling the position vacated by Barnard's departure. It was a role he would take until well after the surrender of Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
on April 9, 1865. The appointment was largely a caretaker role, as the final number of guns and forts had been established by the 1863 commission, and the Union Army's success in the field meant that no major force could threaten Washington. The only exception to this came in late July 1864, when Confederate forces under the command of Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early attacked Washington's defenses from the north during the Battle of Fort Stevens
Battle of Fort Stevens
The Battle of Fort Stevens was an American Civil War battle fought July 11–12, 1864, in Northwest Washington, D.C., as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 between forces under Confederate Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early and Union Maj. Gen. Alexander McD. McCook. Although Early caused consternation...
.
Following the conclusion of the war, Alexander presided over the drawdown in U.S. Army forces in Washington and the gradual decommissioning of the forts surrounding the city. On May 9, 1865, Alexander was ordered to stop work maintaining and improving the forts surrounding Washington as part of cost-cutting measures. Alexander, not wishing to see Washington return to its defenseless pre-war state, recommended that some forts be continually maintained in order to preserve them for future needs. The recommendations were accepted, but Alexander's ability to follow through on them was limited by an August order to "not incur expenses for hired labor" and the inability of the chief engineer of the District of Washington to furnish the large numbers of enlisted men needed to continue the upkeep.
By January 1866, no funds were available even to keep Alexander's offices open, and on January 13, 1866, he declared, "... I closed up my office here, as far as it is possible to close it, before leaving ...". By July 14, 1866, all of the outstanding debts of the office of the defenses of Washington were paid off in full and its work was fully completed.
California Years
As chief engineer to the Military Division of the Pacific, he was the top U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officer on the entire American Pacific Coast. Upon his arrival on the West Coast, he visited locations from Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
to the Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
border in order to analyze the work that would be needed. Between 1868 and 1870, he surveyed numerous California harbors and made engineering suggestions as required. One of these suggestions resulted in the construction of a 7,000-foot breakwater
Breakwater (structure)
Breakwaters are structures constructed on coasts as part of coastal defence or to protect an anchorage from the effects of weather and longshore drift.-Purposes of breakwaters:...
that made Long Beach
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
harbor accessible to large amounts of shipping for the first time. In 1870, he suggested that landowners near Colusa, California
Colusa, California
Colusa is the county seat of Colusa County, California. The population was 5,971 at the 2010 census, up from 5,402 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
, construct levees to contain the Sacramento River within a single channel. The plan would reclaim swampland and control the river's annual floods, making large-scale farming possible. The plan was eagerly seized upon by local residents.
In the spring of 1872, Col. Alexander and Maj. Gen. John M. Schofield, commander of the Military Division of the Pacific
Military Division of the Pacific
The Military Division of the Pacific was a major command of the United States Army during the 19th century.-Formation:On July 27, 1865 the Military Division of the Pacific was created under Major General Henry W...
, sailed from San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, to Honolulu in the then-independent Kingdom of Hawaii
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...
on a secret mission to evaluate Hawaii's ports in terms of defensive capabilities and commercial facilities. Fellow civil war veteran Alfred S. Hartwell
Alfred S. Hartwell
Alfred Stedman Hartwell was a lawyer and American Civil War soldier, who then had another career as cabinet minister and judge in the Kingdom of Hawaii.-Life:Alfred Stedman Hartwell was born June 11, 1836 in South Natick, Massachusetts...
was their host, who was on the kingdom's supreme court at the time. They recognized the great potential of Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
as a "harbor of refuge in time of war," and on May 8, 1873, recommended that the War Department acquire the harbor. Their suggestion resulted in the signing of the reciprocity Treaty of 1875
Reciprocity Treaty of 1875
The Treaty of reciprocity between the United States of America and the Hawaiian Kingdom was a free trade agreement signed and ratified in 1875 that is generally known as the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875....
between the United States and Hawaii. As part of the treaty, Hawaii ceded the area of Pearl Harbor to the United States in return for trade agreements benefiting Hawaiian sugar planters. The treaty was signed on September 8, 1876, helping pave the way for eventual American annexation of the Kingdom.
Irrigation and Land Reclamation
Following his return to California, Col. Alexander was appointed president of a board appointed by the U.S. Congress to study the potential of irrigating the San Joaquin ValleySan Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is the area of the Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta in Stockton...
, Tulare Valley, and Sacramento Valley
Sacramento Valley
The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses all or parts of ten counties.-Geography:...
. The board, which became known as the Alexander Commission, conducted a survey of the California Central Valley
California Central Valley
California's Central Valley is a large, flat valley that dominates the central portion of California. It is home to California's most productive agricultural efforts. The valley stretches approximately from northwest to southeast inland and parallel to the Pacific Ocean coast. Its northern half is...
throughout the summer and fall of 1873. The Commission's report declared that large-scale irrigation was possible and that much land could be reclaimed from the swamps around the Sacramento River
Sacramento River
The Sacramento River is an important watercourse of Northern and Central California in the United States. The largest river in California, it rises on the eastern slopes of the Klamath Mountains, and after a journey south of over , empties into Suisun Bay, an arm of the San Francisco Bay, and...
. The report was not initially acted upon, but was the first professional survey of the valley and set the stage for further development.
In 1874 and 1875, Alexander was assigned to a board examining the problem of keeping the Mississippi River Delta
Mississippi River Delta
The Mississippi River Delta is the modern area of land built up by alluvium deposited by the Mississippi River as it slows down and enters the Gulf of Mexico...
from silt
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...
ing up and becoming an impediment to ship traffic. During the course of his tenure on the board, he traveled to Europe in order to examine European solutions to the problem. At the end of 1875, Alexander was asked by the state government of California to examine a proposed irrigation project in the San Joaquin Valley. Busy with other projects, Alexander appointed an associate, William Hammond Hall
William Hammond Hall
William Hammond Hall was a civil engineer who was the first State Engineer of California, and designed Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, CA.After serving with the U.S...
, to head the project.
Alexander died in San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, on December 15, 1878, at the age of 59. He was buried in the San Francisco National Cemetery.
External links
- Battery Alexander in California was named in Alexander's honor in 1901.