Alexander Ferdinand Mathews (November 13, 1838 – December 17, 1906) was an American lawyer, banker, and university board director in the

U.S. State In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

. He served as a

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

officer and aide-de-camp to Brigadier General

Henry A. Wise Henry Alexander Wise (December 3, 1806 – September 12, 1876) was an American attorney, diplomat, politician and slave owner from Virginia. As the 33rd Governor of Virginia, Wise served as a significant figure on the path to the American Civil ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Early life

Alexander F. Mathews born on November 13, 1838, in Frankford, Greenbrier County, Virginia, to Eliza (Reynolds) and

Mason Mathews Mason Mathews (December 15, 1803 – September 16, 1878) was an American merchant and politician in the U.S. State of Virginia (present-day West Virginia). He served in the Virginia House of Delegates, representing Greenbrier County, West Virgin ...

. He was educated at the local Lewisburg Academy and enrolled in the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in 1854 at the age of 15, where he earned a

Masters of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in less than two years, graduating before his 18th year. This accomplishment was said to have been unprecedented in the history of the university at the time. Combs, p. 18 He was a member of the

Beta Theta Pi Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...

fraternity. He returned to the

University of Virginia School of Law The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as part of his "academical village", and now ...

in 1857, and in the same year was admitted to the bar.

Civil War

On the outbreak of the

in 1861, Mathews volunteered for the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

. He received a commission of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

and was assigned to the staff of Brigadier General

as Wise's aide-de-camp during Wise's unsuccessful campaigns in Western Virginia. Wise's brigade was broken up, and Mathews was reassigned to the 59th Virginia Infantry as

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

and drillmaster. In 1864, he was again reassigned to of Inspector of Conscription for

Virginia's 8th congressional district Virginia's 8th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district located just across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. It comprises several populous cities and suburbs in Northern Virginia, including all of Alexandria, Arlingt ...

, where he remained for the remainder of the war.

Postbellum

Mathews married Laura M. Gardner on December 28, 1865. Together they had eight children: Mason, Charles Gardner, Mary Miller, Eliza Patton, Maud, Florence, and Henry. LLHE Due to the restrictions placed on former Confederates in the years after the war, Mathews was unable to practice the law. He taught for several years at the Lewisburg Academy, where he had received his early education. When restrictions for Confederates were lifted, he and his brother

Henry M. Mathews Henry Mason Mathews (March 29, 1834April 28, 1884) was an American military officer, lawyer, and politician in the U.S. State of West Virginia. Mathews served as the seventh attorney general of West Virginia (1873–1877) and the fifth governo ...

opened a law firm under the name Mathews & Mathews, which became one of the most successful in the region. Mathews was appointed to the

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia, United States. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Ins ...

Board of Regents In the United States, a board often governs institutions of higher education, including private universities, state universities, and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual co ...

during that institution's infancy, and served on the board from 1871 to 1881. In 1871, Mathews, along with Adam C. Snydor and Homer A. Holt, founded the first bank in

Greenbrier County, West Virginia Greenbrier County () is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,977. Its county seat is Lewisburg. The county was formed in 1778 from Botetourt and Montgomery Counties in Virginia. History P ...

. Until 1888, this was the only bank between

Staunton, Virginia Staunton ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 25,750. In Virginia, independent cities a ...

and

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in West Virginia, most populous city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Kanawha County, West Virginia, Kanawha County and ...

some 200 miles apart. He served as president or director of the bank continuously until his death. Mathews additionally took part in the founding the First National Bank of

Ronceverte Ronceverte is a city in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, United States, on the Greenbrier River. The population was 1,572 at the 2020 census. Culture and history Ronceverte might have been named "Edgar", for the high number of Edgars who lived ...

, when it was chartered by the State of West Virginia in 1888.First National Bank (2013). First National Bank: Celebrating 125 Years. http://www.wvbankers.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/FirstNationalBankCelebrates125%20Years.pdf He died on December 16, 1906, in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and was buried at the Old Stone Church in Lewisburg, West Virginia.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mathews, Alexander Ferdinand 1838 births 1906 deaths American bankers American financiers Military personnel from West Virginia Beta Theta Pi Confederate States Army officers Educators from West Virginia Mathews family (Virginia and West Virginia) People from Lewisburg, West Virginia People of Virginia in the American Civil War People of West Virginia in the American Civil War University of Virginia alumni Virginia lawyers West Virginia Democrats West Virginia lawyers West Virginia University regents People from Greenbrier County, West Virginia