Hall, Alexander K. (Alexander Kirtland), 1817-1876.

The Alexander K. Hall family resided in the southwestern part Dallas County, Alabama, in the Portland area.

From the description of Alexander K. Hall family photographs, [185-?]-[19--?]. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 122439359

Alexander Kirtland Hall (1817-1876) was from the Catskills region of New York. In 1839, he and two of his brothers, Francis "Frank" C. Hall and Chauncey "Chat" moved to Portland, Ala., (Dallas County), where they ran a general store. In 1841 Alexander and his brother Francis married Mary Ann and Elizabeth Cooke, two sisters from Wallingford, Connecticut, and brought them to Alabama. By the 1870s the business had expanded to include a steam saw, grist mill and cotton gin.

Frank Hall and Elizabeth "Elib" had 2 daughters: Cornelia (d. 1848) and Elizabeth "Lillie". They left Alabama in 1849 and moved back to the northeast to settle in New York City.

Alexander K. and Mary Ann "Mollie" Cooke Hall had 5 sons: Fred (1843?-1856), Alexander Kirtland "Ellick" (1845-1881), Edward Clifton (d. 1861), Charles Dibblee "Charlie" (d. 1881), and George Herbert (d. 1865). Two sons, Ellick and Charlie, enlisted in the Confederate cavalry during the Civil War.

Ellick joined the 2nd Alabama Cavalry after the fall of Fort Donelson (Feb. 16, 1862) and was stationed near Pensacola through the summer. He was discharged from the service at the beginning of 1863. After being discharged, Ellick joined an independent cavalry company under a Capt. Holloway. This company eventually became Co. K in the 3rd Alabama Cavalry, a unit that served as escorts and messengers for the commanding officers. He served first as Gen. Braxton Bragg's escort, then as Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's escort. After Gen. Johnston lost his command he served as part of Gen. John B. Hood's escort until Hood's defeat at the Battle of Franklin, Tenn. After Hood's defeat he was attached to Co. B. of the 3rd Alabama Cavalry. Both he and Charlie (who enlisted in the fall of 1864) served as part of Gen. Johnston's escort as the end of the war neared.

Ellick married Mary Snyder Johnson (d. 1876) in 1869. She was an orphan whose guardian was an uncle named Frank Johnson. Frank Johnson was based in Mobile, but because he was a riverboat captain and traveled frequently, Mary spent most of her time at the Alabama Conference Female College in Macon County and with close friends Col. W. W. and Elizabeth Fambro, who lived in Cahaba. Ellick and Mary had three children: Frank (1870-1881), Elizabeth Fambro "Bessie" (b. 1872), and Edward Clifton (1874-1911).

Other prominent members of the family included the Cooke sisters' family in Wallingford, Connecticut. This part of the family consisted of their parents Randall and Elizabeth Cooke and a sister, Helen Cooke Kirtland, also called "Fannie". Helen was married to George Kirtland and had one son, William "Willie" P. Kirtland.

The Hall family was devastated in 1881 when brothers Ellick and Charlie, their cousin Willie Kirtland, Ellick's son Frank, and a family friend James Bassett, were drowned as the result of a boating accident on the Gulf of Mexico. After the tragedy, Mary Ann looked after her remaining grandchildren, Elizabeth and Edward, and continued to live in Alabama until 1893. In that year she moved back to Connecticut with her grandchildren to care for her mother and sister Helen.

From the description of Alexander K. Hall family papers, 1839-1917. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 122498284