Figure of the Week

Charles Thornton Alexander (1790-1842) was the son of William Alexander (1758-1804) of Stafford.  He appears in the records as Thornton Alexander and was the brother of Lewis Alexander (1776-1827), Falmouth merchant.  He was a veteran of the War of 1812 and worked as a tavern keeper and slave trader.  In 1816 he married Frances A. Waller of Stafford.  In 1819 Thornton took over Moses Phillips’ old ordinary (tavern) near the courthouse.  He maintained an ordinary license from that time until 1831.  The following yer the license was granted to his wife, Frances.  Thornton was a member of the Fredericksburg and Falmouth Masonic lodges from 1816 to 1826.  He and his brother moved from Stafford to Washington, DC where Thornton continued in the tavern business.  Frances may have died as he married a woman named Almira.  Around 1837 he and Almira moved to Natchez, Mississippi and became manager of the Steamboat Hotel.  In 1840 a tornado struck Natchez and nearly destroyed the hotel.  Almira was found seriously injured clutching her two dead infants.  Thornton died two years later and Almira continued managing the hotel.