William Jacob Alexander came to Bolivar County Mississippi near Pace. He cleared virgin forest to create Violet Ridge Plantation in the rich alluvial soil of the Mississippi Delta. He and his wife Myrtle Belle Smith Alexander were innovative both in farming and in the latest for their home. He was the first to irrigate his crops in Bolivar County. They reared their family at Violet Ridge with many family and friends on nearby plantations and towns. He was partners in the cotton gin in Pace, Mississippi and he and Myrtle were founding members of the Pace Methodist Church. Their children were educated at the public schools of Pace. Myrtle had to move with the children into town sometimes during the winter so they could go to school. It was traditional in those days to house good travelers who were coming through as there were not close-by hotels. They owned an orchard in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas also. They took the train to Texas to visit the orchard in the summer when the children were out of school. They ordered some groceries and supplies from New Orleans which came up the Mississippi River. One of their sons was deaf either from birth or at a very early age. He went to a school for the deaf in Jackson Mississippi and shared his parents love of innovation and he held some patents.
William Jacob Alexander came to Bolivar County Mississippi near Pace. He cleared virgin forest to create Violet Ridge Plantation in the rich alluvial soil of the Mississippi Delta. He and his wife Myrtle Belle Smith Alexander were innovative both in farming and in the latest for their home. He was the first to irrigate his crops in Bolivar County. They reared their family at Violet Ridge with many family and friends on nearby plantations and towns. He was partners in the cotton gin in Pace, Mississippi and he and Myrtle were founding members of the Pace Methodist Church. Their children were educated at the public schools of Pace. Myrtle had to move with the children into town sometimes during the winter so they could go to school. It was traditional in those days to house good travelers who were coming through as there were not close-by hotels. They owned an orchard in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas also. They took the train to Texas to visit the orchard in the summer when the children were out of school. They ordered some groceries and supplies from New Orleans which came up the Mississippi River. One of their sons was deaf either from birth or at a very early age. He went to a school for the deaf in Jackson Mississippi and shared his parents love of innovation and he held some patents.
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