Individual Details

It was originally believed that seven brothers and two sisters ranging in ages from five to twenty-four immigrated from Derry, Ireland, on the ship "Welcome" - dropping anchor in the Delaware River on September 21, 1670.  The parents of the "infamous nine", as they are known in genealogical circles, were highly disputed at the time I started my research in 1998.  Some sources cited a Rev. James Alexander and his wife Mary Maxwell as the parents, while the majority of sources believed that a William, a son of Sir William Alexander, was the father.  My research, facilitated by historians from the Cecil County Historical Society, led me to believe that the father of the nine was another William Alexander descended from Sir William's son, John Alexander.  John immigrated to the Colony of Virginia (Stafford County) earlier in 1659.  A William Alexander did own land with several of the nine children.  As of this date there is no agreement on the parents of the nine children, how they got to Maryland, or if they were even brothers and sisters.   Alexander researchers are actively exploring the possibility that the nine migrated from Virginia, and that some of the nine were perhaps cousins.

Birth	1625	Raphoe, County Donegal, Ireland
Marriage	11 Jun 1640	Raphoe, Donegal, Ireland - Mary Shaw Alexander
Death	28 Nov 1689	Manokin, Somerset County, Maryland, British America
Burial		Princess Anne, Somerset County, Maryland, United States of America

Spouse	Mary Shaw Alexander (1625 - 1701)
Child	William Alexander Jr. (1646 - 1745)
Child	Andrew Alexander (1648 - 1700)
Child	Elizabeth Rose Alexander (1650 - 1692)
Child	Francis Alexander (1654 - 1719)
Child	James Alexander (1660 - )
Child	Joseph Alexander (1660 - 1730)
Child	John Alexander (1662 - 1718)
Child	Jane Alexander (1665 - )