Captain James Alexander
Biography of Captain James Alexander
James Alexander was the son of James and Catherine Yeoman Alexander of Glasgow. He attended Hutchesons Grammar school before becoming a student of the Law department at the University of Glasgow.
Though he attended university in 1899 and 1900, there are no further records of his attendance, or the completion of his law degree. It is likely that he took classes either as part of an apprenticeship, or as that he found employment, as he later became a partner in the firm Alexander and Martin.
Alexander had a keen interest in football, and served as both a committee member and Treasurer on the board of the Queen's Park Football Club in Glasgow. When war broke out, Alexander joined up as a member of the 16th Highland Light Infantry, also known as the Glasgow Boys Brigade. A number of other Queen's Park members and players joined the same battalion.
James Alexander became Captain in December 1914. In July 1916, during the Battle of the Somme, Alexander got shell-shock and had to return home to Britain for a year to recover. He returned to the Western Front in July the following year.
He died at the age of 37 years old during the battle of Passchendale on the 2nd December 1917. He is memorialized at the Tyne Cot Memorial, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, a site dedicated to those who passed away with no known grave in the area of Ypres-Salient.
Images
University Connections
WWI Roll of Honour
Summary
Captain James Alexander
Rank: Captain
Regiment: 16th Highland Light Infantry
Degree: Student
Awards: N/A
Comments: Killed in action, 2 December 1917. Attended Hutchesons Grammar School.
Note/Press Clipping: Ch 4/4/2/3/630
Photo ID: Ch 4/4/2/2/5
Sources
University of Glasgow Registry Records
Further information about James Alexander provided by Queen's Park Football Club, available here
There are no comments available.