John Henry Alexander
Encyclopedia
John Henry Alexander was a noted scientist and businessman, born in Annapolis, Maryland
in 1812. The youngest child of William and Mary (Harwood Stockett) Alexander, he attended St. John's College in Annapolis and graduated in 1827 at age fifteen. He spent the next four years reading law
privately, but apparently he did not take the bar exam, choosing instead to begin working for the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad. Alexander also attended medical lectures in Baltimore, though he did not receive a degree in Medicine.
As part of his work for the railroad, Alexander performed surveys and made maps of the route. This experience, combined with his academic achievements, led to Alexander's 1833 appointment as the Chief Engineer of Maryland with a charge to create a complete map of Maryland. While carrying out his surveys for this task, Alexander located several canal route proposals including Zekiah Swamp
, and the richest coal deposits in the state. Frustrated with having to divert his mapping assignment for internal improvements
projects, he quit as Maryland's official cartographer, and joined with a friend, P.T. Tyson, Esq., to found the George's Creek Iron and Coal Company. By the time Alexander resigned his state position in 1837, the company's success had made him financially secure.
Alexander held a wide variety of professional appointments over his lifetime. He served as Chief Cartographer of Maryland, geologist of Maryland, and in 1857 was appointed Commissioner to England to work on creating an international system of weights and measures. Alexander also was professor of civil engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and professor of physics at the University of Maryland.
He published a number of works including his report on a new map of Maryland (1835), a treatise on international coinage of Great Britain and the United States (1857) and an opinion on the location of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in Wheeling, Virginia (1850). He edited a treatise on leveling (1838) and Sims' treatise on mathematical instruments, used in surveying, and leveling, astronomy (1835). He was a fellow of the American Philosophical Society, and a member of the Geographical and Statistical Society and the Maryland and Pennsylvania Historical Societies. In 1847, he was elected an honorable member of the Belle Lettres Society at the College of St. James in Hagerstown, Maryland.
Alexander married Margaret Hammer on June 4, 1836, in Baltimore. They had at least two sons, the second one born in Baltimore in October 1838. Throughout his life Alexander maintained close ties with his older brothers, William (born circa 1803) and Thomas Stockett (born 1801.) The brothers shared a deep devotion to the Whig party, and William often sent Alexander detailed accounts of the actions of the House of Delegates in Annapolis.
Alexander was active in the congregation of St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Baltimore, and wrote a concordance to the Book of Common Prayer as well as two volumes of religious poetry.
John Henry Alexander died on March 2, 1867.
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
in 1812. The youngest child of William and Mary (Harwood Stockett) Alexander, he attended St. John's College in Annapolis and graduated in 1827 at age fifteen. He spent the next four years reading law
Reading law
Reading law is the method by which persons in common law countries, particularly the United States, entered the legal profession before the advent of law schools. This usage specifically refers to a means of entering the profession . A small number of U.S...
privately, but apparently he did not take the bar exam, choosing instead to begin working for the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad. Alexander also attended medical lectures in Baltimore, though he did not receive a degree in Medicine.
As part of his work for the railroad, Alexander performed surveys and made maps of the route. This experience, combined with his academic achievements, led to Alexander's 1833 appointment as the Chief Engineer of Maryland with a charge to create a complete map of Maryland. While carrying out his surveys for this task, Alexander located several canal route proposals including Zekiah Swamp
Zekiah Swamp
Zekiah Swamp is part of the Wicomico River basin in Charles County, Maryland in the United States. It is largely protected with the Zekiah Swamp Natural Environment Area a and sits at an elevation of .. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has the authority to purchase an additional for...
, and the richest coal deposits in the state. Frustrated with having to divert his mapping assignment for internal improvements
Internal improvements
Internal improvements is the term used historically in the United States for public works from the end of the American Revolution through much of the 19th century, mainly for the creation of a transportation infrastructure: roads, turnpikes, canals, harbors and navigation improvements...
projects, he quit as Maryland's official cartographer, and joined with a friend, P.T. Tyson, Esq., to found the George's Creek Iron and Coal Company. By the time Alexander resigned his state position in 1837, the company's success had made him financially secure.
Alexander held a wide variety of professional appointments over his lifetime. He served as Chief Cartographer of Maryland, geologist of Maryland, and in 1857 was appointed Commissioner to England to work on creating an international system of weights and measures. Alexander also was professor of civil engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and professor of physics at the University of Maryland.
He published a number of works including his report on a new map of Maryland (1835), a treatise on international coinage of Great Britain and the United States (1857) and an opinion on the location of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in Wheeling, Virginia (1850). He edited a treatise on leveling (1838) and Sims' treatise on mathematical instruments, used in surveying, and leveling, astronomy (1835). He was a fellow of the American Philosophical Society, and a member of the Geographical and Statistical Society and the Maryland and Pennsylvania Historical Societies. In 1847, he was elected an honorable member of the Belle Lettres Society at the College of St. James in Hagerstown, Maryland.
Alexander married Margaret Hammer on June 4, 1836, in Baltimore. They had at least two sons, the second one born in Baltimore in October 1838. Throughout his life Alexander maintained close ties with his older brothers, William (born circa 1803) and Thomas Stockett (born 1801.) The brothers shared a deep devotion to the Whig party, and William often sent Alexander detailed accounts of the actions of the House of Delegates in Annapolis.
Alexander was active in the congregation of St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Baltimore, and wrote a concordance to the Book of Common Prayer as well as two volumes of religious poetry.
John Henry Alexander died on March 2, 1867.