Historical Marker
Judge William Alexander
Palestine, Anderson County · Texas
Erected 1965
William Alexander was born in Scotland on September 10, 1814, and came to Galveston in 1850 before moving to Palestine. Governor Sam Houston appointed him chief justice of Anderson County in 1860, and he served until 1865. A Presbyterian, he sat on the first school board. On March 8, 1857, he married Susan Scott Mallard, widow of John B. Mallard, and the family lived in the house Mallard had built in 1848, now marked as Seven Oaks. He died in January 1872 and is buried near Mallard in Palestine.
What the plaque says
Judge William Alexander Born 1814 in Scotland. Settled in Palestine 1851. Trustee in first school. Practiced in Supreme Courts, Alabama, Texas. Was a partner of John H. Reagan, C.S.A. Postmaster-General, U. S. Congressman, U. S. Senator, Railroad Commissioner. Married 1857 Mrs. Susan Scott Mallard, widow of another law partner. Had two daughters. Chief Justice, Anderson County, 1860-1865. Died in Palestine, 1872. Recorded, 1965 Incise in base: Erected by Ruth R. Eppner, Granddaughter
Where it stands
31.76358, -95.62284 · Directions
Worth the stop nearby
- Texas State Railroad Excursion Train — 3.5 miA round trip of about 25 miles of track between the Palestine and Rusk depots through the Piney Woods, on a line built by prison labor and reopened as a tourist railroad in 1976.
More markers nearby
- John Byler Mallard, Judge — steps away
- Captain William Kimbro — steps away
- Timothy Stephen Smith — 0.2 mi
- Palestine Salt Works C. S. A. — 0.2 mi