ALEXANDRIA'S CHURCHES-Our illustration of some of the Churches of Alexandria proves that our people believe in keeping up good CHURCHEs.. In ADDITION TO Christ EpiscopaL CHURCH, TO WHICH WE GIVE EXTRA SPACE ON ACCOUNT OF ITS HISTORIC CONNECTIOn, OUR ILLUSTRATION SHOWS, be- ginning at the top, right to left on illustration: The Hebrew Synagogue, Methodist Episcopal, St. Mary's Catholic, First Baptist, then The Old Pres- BYTERIAN Church, WHICH WASHINGTON ASSISTED IN BUILDMg, AND ATTENDED AT TIMES; MeTHODIST PROTESTANT Church, SecOND PrESBYTERIAN. IN ADDITION TO these there are St. Paul's P. E. and Grace Protestant Episcopal, The Lutheran Church and Free Methodist, with quite a number of Color- Churches. Alexandria not only has the Churches but her people attend and support them. N PRESEN'£ING this book to the general public, the author desires to AlEXANDRIA IS ONLY BEGINNING TO TAL{E ITS PROPER POSITION AND THAT ITS FUTURE WILL SAY THAT, HAVING th. CENDORSETLLENT OF THE MaYor, CITY COUNCil, AND CHAm- BE MARKED BY PROGRESS IN EVERY STAGE. ".RHE PHOTOGRAPHS USED HEREIN ARE PRINCi- ber of Commerce of the grand old city of Alexandria, although the book pally made by Mr. A. L. Jameson and Frauk A. Wedderburn, of Alexandria. IS NECESSARILY COMPILED HURRIEDLy, NOT TO SAY CRUDELY, HE HOPES THAT THE RRHE PHOTOLITHOGRAPH£ ARE THE WORK OF MaURICE JoYCE EnGRAVING CoMPANY, AND I HISTORICAL SECTION OF THE BOOL{ WILL PROVE GRATIFYING AND SATISfactory; AND the printing by the Sudwarth Printing Company, 510 Twelfth Street, WaShing. he believes that the industrial section will astonish not ouly the outside TON, D. C., TO WHONL THE WRITER DESIRES TO EXTEND HIS THANL{s FOR CAREFUL AND excel~ world but our own people: LENT WORK. III his Sesqui.Centenllial sketch of Alexandria, published ill 1899, the writer To the Mayor and City Council, The Chamber of Commerce, and those enter- made use of the following" language: PRISING' CITIZENS OF AlEXAndria, WHo, BY THEIR LIBERAL SUPPORt, HAVE MADE IT POSSIW U THIS BOOK IS WRITTEN AS A REMINDER OF WHAT A UNITED COMMUNITY CAN ACCOm- BJE FOR THIS BOOK TO BE ISSUED, I DESIRE TO EXTEND MY THANKS AND ASSURE THELN OF MY plisb, ILL the hope that, by keeping alive the remembrance of the INCLNORIAL October APPRECIATION. r£o MR. PrESTON, SECRETARY OF THE ChambER OF COMMERCE, I DESIRE 12,1899, the day may prove but the forecast of coming events which will build up TO EXPRESS SPECIAL THAnI,s FOR VALUABLE ASSISTANCE IN THE PREPARATION OF Com- our community and add to the prosperity and happiness of a people whose works MERCIAL STATISTICS FNRNISHED BY him. PROVE THEM WORTHY OF BOTh." '£uRNING FROM THE PAST AND THE PRESENT TO THE FUTURE, I RESPECTFULLY DEDICATE ., AlEXANDRIA HAS ill STORE A BRIGHT FUTURE IF HER PEOPLE WILL BUT SEIZE THE TIDE THIS BOOK TO "A GREATER AlEXANDRIa," A CITY WORTHY IN EVERY RESPECT OF ITS PAST IN ITS FLOOD AND PRESCNT TO THE WORLD THEIR FAITH IN THIS CITY BY WORKING TO BUILD his~ory AND THE IMMORTAL MAN WITH WHOM THAT HISTORY IS SO CLOSELY LINKED. UP THE MANUFACTURING AND COl11MERCIAL INTERESTS TO WHICH ITS LOCATION AND NATURAL ADVANTAGES JUSTILY ENTITLE IT." . Respectfully, IN VIEW OF THE GREAT STRIDE MADE BY OUR CITY SINCE THE SESQui-CENTENNIAL THE ALEX J. WEDDERBURN. TRUTH OF THE ABOVE EXTRACT IS ABUNDANTLY PROVED. It SEEMS TO THE WRITER THAT "POTOMAC YARDS," Alexandria, Va. Largest Classification Yards in the United States. Prcpert·y of the Washington, Southern and Allied Railroads, Costing, when complete, over $2,000,000, Contains 45 miles of Tracks and 2 miles of river frontage. Employs 800 men. Monthly Pay Roll, $60,000. Capacity of Yard, 35,000 cars, Number of Cars handled month- lr, 6§,099. C!ip~c;ityIcin& ~te1;jQP.flor p~r~~habl~ freight~ ~9 <;~rsone time, but Cij.Ube duplicated at least 6 times daily. City Hall, Market; and Masonic Temple (Washington Lodge); Historic Braddock House in distance. Left- Original Market House, destroyed by fire 1871, and rc;:b\!ilt 1873' Right-Rear view of Market space and sheds, showing Old Museum in second story. Belle Haven. APT. JOHN SMITH, in 1608, ascended the the persons so locating is not known. Potomac sceking adventure and fortune and In 1730 a public tobacco warehouse C passed Alexandria's present location, to be was established by the colonial ,>topped by the falls of the Potomac. The site authorities on Simon Pierson's land of Alexand,·ia was thcn part of the Doag Indians' about where the gas works now hunting grounds. stand. Around this warehouse some On October 21st, 1669, Capt. Robert Howsen, for settlements were made and thus bringing 120 Colonists to Virginia, was granted a arose the hamlet of Belhaven, which Crown paten t by Govcrnor Berkeley, for 6,600 had one street-Oronoco-named af- acres of land, extcnding along the Potomac east ter the tobacco brought there. from Indian Cabin Creek (Hunting Creek) to a point opposite Tradition says that the village took My Lord's Island, now Analostan, lying between Washington its name from a neighboring tobacco and Rosslyn. This grant comprised a large part of the present planter. It is far more likely that the county of Alexandria. At that name was given to the town because time it was *Prince William of its "fair haven." The cove lying county and later Fairfax, between the two points that extended from which county Alexan- into the river from Oronoco and dria was taken as the two Dukc streets (since filled in and built and a half square miles ceded on) must have made a bcautiful har- by Virginia to the General bor for the small ships of that early Government for thc District perIod and hence I am inclined to be- of Columbia and rctroceded lieve that the term "Belle Haven" by the Government in 1847. arose hom this, rather than from the name of any individual. Captain H owscn sold this In 1739 a school was established. land to John Alexander for Thus early did the people of this lo- 6,600 pounds of tobacco and cality show their appreciation of edu- some money, who, in 1677 cation and the town cver since has sent some settlers to occupy it. been one of the forcmost in educa- Dyson & Bro. In 1696 Simon Pierson, tional work. who was connected by mar- This is about all the facts that can be gathered regarding the riage with the Alexanders, town of Belhaven up to 1748, when, by act of the Colonial As- locatcd on Pierson's Isla1ll1 scmbly, the formation of Alcxandria was authorized. (now Daingcrfield's), north- wcst of the prescn t city, the first known permanent set- tlement north of Hunting ~.:- Creek. Tl~e following was prepared fr<:llTIthe reco.r(~s and kindly A settlemcn t was made on furlllshed me by Mrs. Mary FranCIS Swann WIllIams, a great- Ramsay house, corller King and Fairfax, Jones Point not long after gJ'cat-granddaughter of John Alexander, the gcntleman who do- oldest house in Alexandria. this date, but the name of nated City Hall square and Christ Church lot. *Fairfax was cut off from Prince William 174~. Friendship Fire Company photographed in front of Christ Church as they were leaving the city for New York to participate in the Centennial of Washington's first inaugural. John Alexander, the first in this country, settled in the north- daughter married Birch) a patent, conveying a large portion of ern neck of Virginia (Stafford county) about the year 1640. the Howsen patent, especially that portion including Alexandria. He acquired an immense tract of land in Stafford, some of which Suit was brought to wrest these lands from the Alexander.s, un- is still in the possession of his direct heirs, having descended der various pretexts, the strongest plea being the grant from the from generation to generation for two hundred and sixty years. crown, to Lord Fairfax, of the northern neck of Virginia. He resided in Stafford. The head of the family at the close of The Alexanders defended this suit for years. It was carried the Revolution was designated "Alexander to the Court of Appeals and finally settled of Boyd's Hole and all Chotank." In 1669 in 1790. The court decided that sixty years John Alexander, son of the emigrant John, possession before Lord Fairfax obtained bought the Howsen patent from Robert his grant would in itself give them owner- Howsen. This patent was granted to the ship. Thus, after a long and warm contest, patentee Howsen by Governor Sir William the Alexanders maintained their right to Berkeley in 1669. It embraced all the land the Howsen patent, which, by the time the from Hunting creek on the south to the case was closed judicially, they had held Potomac on the north, containing some in continuous line of inheritance for 121 6,600 acres. years. The receipt given by one of the John Alexander died in 1691, leaving in lawyers in the final settlement of the case his will the Howsen patent to his two sons, is a curious bit of financial -literature. It Robert and Philip. The younger son, is as follows: Philip, made over his share of the patent to "Rec'd of Charles Alexander two Guin- his brother in exchange for lands else- eas weighing two pounds, sixteen shillings where. Thus the Howsen patent was vest- & Ten pence, 13 round dollars, one French ed solely in Robert, who died in 1704 leav- crown & a piece of Gold weighing four ing two sons, Robert and Charles.