The family's economic circumstances were reflected in the value of Absalom's property, which had increased substantially since 1850 – from $1,600 to $4,000. Farming provided the foundation of their household life, allowing Noah to grow up in an environment where land, family responsibilities, and agricultural labor were central features of everyday living.
In addition, Noah's childhood coincided with a turbulent period in America. Political tensions intensified during the years leading up to the Civil War, which began in April 1861. When fighting commenced, Noah was not yet 14 years old. However, his life would take a dramatic turn as he entered military service the following year.
Civil War Service
During the summer of 1862, Noah was still a teenager when he enlisted with the federal Army at Shelbyville, Tennessee. He volunteered to fight for the Union even though his parents were both natives of Confederate states. Although the birthplace of his parents alone cannot establish the family's political convictions, Noah's decision to fight for the Union suggests that the Alexander family may have held Unionist sympathies despite its Southern roots. His federal enlistment is particularly noteworthy given the divided loyalties that characterized southern Tennessee and the surrounding region during the war.
Since Noah was born in May 1847, he was only 15 years old when he put on his blue uniform. An online military profile notes his enlistment age as 18, so it is possible he stretched his true age a bit when he signed up to serve. On July 7, 1862, he mustered-in at Nashville, Tennessee as a Private in Company E, 10th Tennessee Infantry. This newly organized regiment was assigned to perform garrison, railroad-guard, and other military duties in Tennessee and the surrounding area.
The precise start of Noah’s military service is recorded differently in various sources. One military profile gives June 9, 1862, as his enlistment date, while a compiled-service-record identifies June 19, 1862. The military profile records his formal muster-in date as July 7, 1862, in Tennessee. These date variations may represent different stages in the enlistment and mustering process.
Noah continued to serve in Company E until the end of the war, mustering out of the army at Nashville. His service profile gives June 23, 1865, as his muster-out date. However, the 1890 Census Special Veterans Schedule, notes a later date for his discharge, July 3, 1865, and calculates his time in service as three years and 24 days. This reported service duration does not align neatly with the dates in other records, so it should be treated as the ‘Veteran’s Schedule's recorded figure’ rather than an independently confirmed calculation. The 10th Tennessee Infantry’s regimental history supports the earlier June 23, 1865 date as the plausible muster-out date. The difference between the regimental chronology and Noah's individual Veterans Schedule entry nevertheless deserves to remain visible in his biography.
By the time Noah left the army, he was 18 years old. He subsequently established himself in Texas, married in 1873, and built a life centered on farming and raising children. His early military service remained a significant part of his biography, later reflected in his association with the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.) in Texas.
A Move to Texas, Marriage and Children
Noah married Mary Jane Davidson on April 3, 1873, in Brazos County, Texas. He was 26 years old and she was 25. She was born in Alabama and became Noah's lifelong companion. Their marriage marked the beginning of a large family that would eventually include six children.
In October 1873, not long after their marriage, Noah and Mary Jane welcomed their first child into the family when Benedict D. Alexander was born. Stella Maude Alexander followed about two years later, in August 1876. William Absalom Alexander came along in January 1878 and Zella Ward Alexander was born in March 1881. Edna West Alexander entered the family in August 1884, and Pearl B. Alexander followed two years later, in September 1886. By late 1886, with six children growing up on the farm, the Alexander household must have been a bustling and lively place.
The couple's first years together coincided with a period of growth and change throughout Texas. Farming remained an important occupation, and families continued to establish farms and communities across the state. Noah also pursued agriculture, an occupation that would remain central to his working life.
The June 1880 federal census places the couple in Precinct #3, in Lamar County - a far northeastern Texas county bordering Oklahoma. Noah was 33 and farming. Mary was also listed at age 33, and was keeping house. Their three young children at that time were: Ben, age 5; S. M., age 3; and W. A. Alexander, age 2. The census identifies all three children as born in Texas, reflecting the Lone Star state as the setting for the younger generation's early lives.
Even though Noah had resettled comfortably into civilian life, his connection to the Civil War remained important. On July 17, 1884, he submitted an application for a military pension based on his Union Army service. His application was eventually approved, and he received pension certificate number 1009813.
The 1890 Census Special Veterans Schedule provides another glimpse of his circumstances. His Post Office address was listed as Era, a small community in Cooke County, approximately 60 miles north of Fort Worth. The schedule confirmed his service as a Private in the 10th Tennessee Infantry. He apparently had no lingering service-related disabilities, as none were noted by the census enumerator.
In 1900, the Alexander family was still living in Cooke County, Texas. The federal census, taken in June that year, provides a particularly detailed picture of the household. Noah was 53 years old and again identified as a farmer. He owned his farm with a mortgage. Mary was also 53 and they had been married 27 years. All six of their children were still living – and all were still living with their parents - even though four of them had reached adulthood. None were married. Benedict Alexander was 25 and had attended school nine months during the preceding year. Stella Alexander was 23, William Alexander was 22, and Zella Alexander was 19. The two younger Alexander girls, Edna, age 15, and Pearl, age 13, had attended school for five months during the year.
