William Alexander was born on February 27th, 1821. William Alexander's father was Green Hill Pryor and his mother was Obedience Holloway. His paternal grandparents were Mathew J. Pryor and Mary Neeley. He had three brothers and a sister, named Jackson, Sampson, John J. and Mary A.. He was the second youngest of the five children. He died at the age of 88 in 1909.