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W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1977 Eighteenth-century Alexandria, Virginia, before the Revolution, 1749-1776 Thomas M. Preisser College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Preisser, Thomas M., "Eighteenth-century Alexandria, Virginia, before the Revolution, 1749-1776" (1977). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539623705. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-9jf6-s176 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 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University Microfilms International 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 USA St John’s Road, Tyler's Green High Wycombe. Bucks. England HP10 8HR Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 77-31,801 PREISSER, Thomas Milton, 1939- EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, BEFORE THE REVOLUTION, 1749-1776. The College of William and Mary in Virginia, Ph.D., 1977 History, United States University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, Michigan4 8 ios @ 1977 THOMAS MILTON PREISSER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Eighteenth-Century Alexandria, Virginia, before the Revolution, 17^9-1776 A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of the Department of History The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy *>y Thomas M. Preisser 19 77 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPROVAL SHEET This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy A*?. L*f€+t*ci Author Approved, July 1977 Richard Maxwell Brown Thad W. Tate John Xy~ Harold B. Gill, Jr. t / ZrU r J - . ^ Robert F. Durden Department of History, Duke University Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, BEFORE THE REVOLUTION, 1749-1776 ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to trace the development of the town of Alexandria, Virginia from its founding in 174-9 to 1776. The study focuses on all aspects of its growth during this period* economic, administrative, social, and political. Commerce was the most important factor in the founding and expansion of colonial Alexandria, which was superbly situated to serve the economic needs of the northern Virginia Tidewater, Piedmont, and Valley regions. Although the town was the administrative, cultural, and religious center of Fairfax County, it probably would not have possessed these functions without the stimulus of trade. Its expanding economy enabled it to dominate the other towns of the Potomac River basin and to grow to a size of just under 2 ,0 0 0 by 1776. Alexandria's most important export commodities were tobacco, Indian com, and, after the mid-1760s, wheat and flour. Its tradesmen imported a variety of processed goods and manufactured items for sale in northern Virginia. The handful of true merchants resident in the community were heavily outnumbered by the local factors, or agents, of firms situated outside of the colony. Because the decision­ making centers for its trades were located away from the Chesapeake, Alexandria's industrial, maritime, and service 1. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2. components were very slow to develop. Ir. an economic sense, the Potomac town was basically a shipping and distribution center for finished goods, foodstuffs, tobacco, and other commodities• Early Alexandria was a prosperous, stable, and relatively peaceful town. Its peace and stability can be attributed to its size and to the fact that its residents lived in a society grounded in the principles of deference. While its co-optive Board of Trustees was dominated by an oligarchy of planters and merchants, the latter group handled most of the business of town governance. In many ways the Potomac community was very much a part of the existing order in Virginia. This can be seen most clearly in the social and cultural development of the town. In no other areas are the traditional elements of life within the colony more evident. The coming of the Revolution was a time of crisis for the town merchants. Although many of them suffered as a result of the trade boycotts, Loyalism never became a viable movement locally. The Alexandria economy as a whole was disrupted, but not seriously damaged, by the events leading up to American independence. THOMAS MILTON PREISSER DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY THE COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY IN VIRGINIA Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION................................. 2 CHAPTER I. ALEXANDRIA* INCEPTION AND EARLY YEARS ..... ...................... 8 CHAPTER II. THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF ALEXANDRIA* THE FOUNDATIONS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH..............................59 CHAPTER III. THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF ALEXANDRIA* THE EXPANSION OF THE GRAIN TRADE.................................11^ CHAPTER IV. GOVERNING THE TOWN . ............ 170 CHAPTER V. THE SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT OF A COMMUNITY....................235 CHAPTER VI. ALEXANDRIA AND THE COMING OF THE REVOLUTION........................... 276 APPENDICES.................................... 31^ BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................. 329 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest appreciation to Professor Richard Maxwell Brown, under whose guidance and encouragement this dissertation was undertaken and completed. I am also indebted to Professor Robert F. Durden, who read and criticised the first chapter, and to Professor Thad W. Tate, whose comments on the manuscript as a whole were invaluable in preparing this revision. I relied heavily during the course of my research on the interlibrary loan facilities of a number of state and university libraries. I am especially appreciative of the assistance rendered by the staffs of the Virginia State Library in Richmond, the Alderman Library of the University of Virginia, and the Swem Library of The College of William and Mary. I am grateful to my son Evan for his patience in letting his father finish this project. Finally, I want to thank my wife Julie. I could not have completed this dissertation without her help; she will understand why it is dedicated to her. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1 . Initial Sale of Alexandria Lets, 174 9-1 753 • 47 2. Population of Alexandria, 1755-1790. .... 53-5^ 3. Consignments from Harry Piper to Firm of Dixon and Littledale, 1767-1775......... 73-7^ 4. 81 Alexandrians Whose Occupations Can Be Identified* 1773-1775 ............. •• 101 5. Vessels Built at Alexandria, 1749-1776 . 1 0 5 -6 6. Commodities Shipped by Firm of Jenifer and Hooe, January 1775 - July 1776 •••••• . 14-3-46 7. Major Commodity Purchases by Firm of Jenifer and Hooe, January 1775 - September 1776. 14-9 8.

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