David W. Alexander
| David W. Alexander | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | June 22, 1812 Ireland |
| Died |
April 29, 1886 (aged 73) Los Angeles, California |
| Occupation | Sheriff |
| Spouse(s) | Adelaida Johnson Mellus |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | George C. Alexander (brother) |
David W. Alexander (June 22, 1812 – April 29, 1886) was an early California politician and pioneer in Los Angeles County, California. He was on the Board of Supervisors in 1853 and 1854, and in 1855 he was elected the third sheriff for the county.
David W. Alexander was born on June 22, 1812 in Ireland. He moved to the United States with one of his brothers in 1832. He resided in Philadelphia for three or four years, and from there he went to Rocheport, Missouri. Some say he spent much of his youth in Mexico.
He operated a trading company to Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1837. In 1841 Alexander, he arrived in California, with the Rowland-Workman Party and lived for some time on Rancho El Rincon, in San Bernardino County, California. He then went to the port of San Pedro, where he and John Temple carried on a trading business and general-merchandise store from 1844 till 1849. They also handled the salting and trading of hides, which were "practically the only form of money in the county."
Temple and Alexander created a sensation . . . by bringing in a four-wheel vehicle into the pueblo [of Los Angeles] in January, 1849. Except for a local-made cart belonging to mission priests it was the first carriage seen in southern California. The importation was a rockaway, costing $1000, along with two American horses, all coming from New England around the Horn on the customary windjammer.
He then formed the Alexander and Mellus Company, a mercantile business in Los Angeles, with Francis Mellus (1824-1863). During this time he also formed a partnership with Phineas Banning in San Pedro, until 1855, when he sold his interest. He also became involved in Southern California real estate. In 1851, landowner Vicente de la Osa sold Rancho Providencia to Alexander and Mellus Company. In 1867, he sold Rancho Providencia to David Burbank. The Rancho Tujunga, Rancho Cahuenga and Rancho Providencia were patented to Alexander by the United States courts in 1872.
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