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by T. Michael Miller (Author)
The 1860's were a time of turmoil and tragedy for the city and county of Alexandria, Virginia. Having recovered from the economic doldrums of the forties, the decade dawned brightly as the building boom of the 1850's and railroad construction provided an impetus for economic recovery and prosperity. Ninety-six firms produced a variety of goods ranging from bark to tinware. The Alexandria Gazette reported: "business upon change is now quite brisk, and the increased arrival of grain from the country promises of a heavy trade.... The railroads are bringing excellent freight and a very large number of passengers are passing over the routes...." G. Terry Sharrer, "Commerce and Industry," in Alexandria: A Towne in Transition, 1800-1900, edited by John D. Macoll & George J. Stansfield, (Alexandria, Va.: Alexandria Bicentennial Commission, 1977).] This enumeration is an alphabetical list of households in the city and county of Alexandria in 1860 arranged according to the name of the head of the household. All persons listed as members of the household are enumerated here with occupation, value of real estate/personal property, age, sex, and birthplace to the extent the data is given in the census records. Persons whose surname differs from that of the head of household can be found in the cross-index. A supplemental index to the 1859 poll book appears at the end of the 1860 census, which lists eligible white voters twenty-one years of age or older and specifies what ward of the city they inhabited. A chart of tithables mirrors the socio-economic conditions prevalent in Alexandria in 1860.
