Dorris Keeven Franke

From Archer Alexander – The Untold Story of an American Hero

Imagine yourself trapped between two hostile forces during the Civil War in Missouri. Caught in this huge conflict the enslaved Archer Alexander would earn his freedom, because of his brave act at the Peruque Creek bridge in St. Charles County. When he learned of his enslaver’s plot to destroy the vital railroad bridge, he rushed to inform the Union Troops stationed at the guardhouse. This critical knowledge would save hundreds of lives, and precious military supplies. With the local area’s men in hot pursuit, Archer fled for his life, via the network to freedom, otherwise known as the Underground Railroad. He would find safety in the home of a Unitarian minister, and founder of Washington University in St. Louis, William Greenleaf Eliot. It would be dangerous to harbor a fugitive slave and though given protection by the military, Archer would be hidden in Alton, Illinois until his emancipation was announced in the newspapers on September 24, 1863. Eliot and Archer would develop a friendship that would transform both of their lives and span generations. Eliot is the grandfather of poet T.S. Eliot.

Now over 150 years later we will honor the life of this hero with two important events, on Saturday, September 24, 2022.  Saint Charles City and County will recognize Archer Alexander at 10 am in the morning in front of the OPO Startups at 119 South Main, where the courthouse stood in 1863. At 1 pm, that afternoon, his family invites the public to join them for a Memorial Service for this heroic man’s life, in the St. Peters UCC Cemetery at 2101 Lucas and Hunt Cemetery in St. Louis County (Normandy). Archer Alexander is known as the face of freedom on the Emancipation Monument in Washington, D.C., a monument erected and dedicated by the formerly enslaved people and the U.S. Colored Troops in 1876.  His descendants will gather to celebrate their brave ancestor, who is also the great-great-great grandfather of Muhammad Ali. The public is invited to share in both special events. For more information about Archer Alexander or these events, see https://archeralexander.blog/ online. For more contact author Dorris Keeven-Franke.