George Andrew Alexander (8 September 1884–1969) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

who served as the 35th

Naval Governor of Guam The governor of Guam ( ch, I Maga'låhen / ) is the head of government of Guam and the commander-in-chief of the Guam National Guard, whose responsibilities also include making the annual State of the Island (formerly the State of the Territor ...

. Prior to serving as governor, he commanded . As Governor of Guam, he greatly changed the judicial system by purging the island of leftover Spanish laws and replacing them with the

Code of Guam In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication ...

. He also led an unsuccessful campaign to obtain

United States citizenship Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...

for all residents of Guam. After his term as governor, he commanded before retiring.

Early life

Alexander grew up and lived most of his life in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Education

Alexander entered the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

from Ohio in 1902. He subsequently attended

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associat ...

Career

In 1929, Alexander took command of the

Naval Oceanographic Office The Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO), located at John C. Stennis Space Center in south Mississippi, comprises approximately 1,000 civilian, military and contract personnel responsible for providing oceanographic products and services to all ...

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

. Alexander left his command of to serve as

Governor of Guam The governor of Guam ( ch, I Maga'låhen / ) is the head of government of Guam and the commander-in-chief of the Guam National Guard, whose responsibilities also include making the annual State of the Island (formerly the State of the Territor ...

. Following his post as governor, he commanded from June 8, 1936, until December 11, 1937. Though the

government of Guam The Government of Guam (GovGuam) is a presidential representative democratic system, whereby the President is the head of state and the Governor is head of government, and of a multi-party system. Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory ...

recommended him for promotion to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

, he retired from the Navy as a

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

Governorship

Alexander served as the governor from June 21, 1933, to March 27, 1936. He supported the local effort to obtain

for all residents of Guam, sending a petition requesting the right and signed by 2,000 Guamanians to the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

. He revolutionized the Guam legal system, replacing old

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

-style laws with the

, a set of laws based on the

California Codes The California Codes are 29 legal codes enacted by the California State Legislature, which together form the general statutory law of California. The official Codes are maintained by the California Office of Legislative Counsel for the Legislature ...

. Though the

Guam Museum The Guam Museum, formally the Senator Antonio M. Palomo Guam Museum & Chamorro Educational Facility, is a museum focusing on the history of Guam, a U.S. territory in Micronesia. A permanent building to house the museum's collection opened in Hag� ...

opened in 1933, Alexander officially made it a government institution by

executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of th ...

Personal life

Alexander was married. They had two daughters, Lois and Lauramae. Alexander and his family have lived in places including Long Beach, California, and Guam. Alexander's daughter is Lauramae Alexander Sholars (Mrs. Stanifer Sholars). In October 1970, Alexander died in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Alexander is interred at

Vine Street Hill Cemetery Vine Street Hill Cemetery is a notable nonprofit cemetery located at 3701 Vine Street, Cincinnati, Ohio. History Members of the German Evangelical Reform Churches of St. Peter and St. Paul of Cincinnati founded the cemetery, now known as the V ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

References

External links

George Andrew Alexander at ourcampaigns.com

Lois Bennett at Los Angeles Times, Nov 14, 1937, Page 72

Alexanders Greet Grand-daughter at Los Angeles Times, Nov 25, 1937, Page 38
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, George A. 1884 births 1969 deaths Military personnel from Ohio United States Naval Academy alumni Governors of Guam United States Navy captains Burials at Vine Street Hill Cemetery