Memories from the Homestead: Alexander Family legacy remembered

    In recent months there's been much discussion locally on the impact of Bob Alexander and his family here in our Branson community. 

Bob passed away on June 3. He was long remembered as a pharmacist and worked over fifty years in that field. Born to Al and Helen Alexander on November 15, 1940, he was their only child. Bob loved everything that involved the great outdoors and was remembered as a talented gunsmith, having a long relationship with the Branson Rifle Club. Many of you I know have a number of memories of Bob and his parents, in particular their Alexander Drug Store on Commercial Street. It all began in 1922 and lasted for decades.

In an interview several years ago at the Branson Centennial Museum, Bob recalled how his parents came to the Branson area.

"My mother's family came to Missouri from Kentucky in 1840. They settled near the state capitol in Wainwright.  My granddad was running a little store there. His name was Shannon Cave, and my grandmother was Rose. Mom (born in 1911) came down here to teach school at Branson.  Her brother had come down here to teach at School of the Ozarks in 1927 and Mom came in 1930."

Helen taught for three years and married Alfred Alexander. The school boards back then didn't like the female teachers to be married. "So, she was forced to retire from the profession," Bob recalled. 

Alfred Alexander was born in 1898 in Jackson County, Missouri, to Thomas and Mary Patterson Alexander.  With six sons they moved to Branson in 1905 as construction on the new railroad was wrapping up. Along with Al were brothers Harmon, Peter, William, Joseph and George.

Thomas went to work at the Winch Spoke Factory, located on the east side of the railroad tracks southeast of the train depot that still stands today as the home of Branson Scenic Railway.   

The Winch Spoke Factory was Branson's first major employment opportunity after the opening of the railroad.  The factory came to Branson from Fort Wayne, Indiana, opening in 1908, and the Springfield Wagon company was their biggest customer. The factory could produce up to six thousand spokes a day, shipping an average of three railcar loads to Springfield weekly. 

Al attended Branson High School when the program was only a two-year school. He and his brother William finished their schooling in Solomon, Kansas. Al would serve in World War I in the U.S. Navy for two years and was stationed on the West Coast. Back home in Branson from the war by 1920, Al found work for the railroad as a tie inspector as his dad was working as a lumber merchant. 

 In 1922 Al went into business with a local partner and operated the Donavon Drug Store. Several years later he bought out his partner and it became Alexander Drug. After Helen's school teaching run had ended, she now had a job opportunity that would become her career. 

Alexander Drug would continue as a long family-owned business; they closed in 1982.

Many of you will recall Alexander Drug being located at 103 South Commercial, where Clocker's Cafe is today. Al and Helen were long remembered for decades for their nickel ice cream cones. Their business saw national attention in the Wall Street Journal and numerous other newspapers. Many of you will recall Bob's stories as well as a number of memories his folks were known for sharing with guests.

How about the time Bonnie and Clyde showed up? According to Al and Helen, they came to the store more than once in the early 1930s. Helen sold makeup and cosmetics to Bonnie, and Al remembered selling cigars to Clyde. Never once did they cause a problem!  

Many young children treasured their time at the store not only for the ice cream, but Al was remembered as the only businessman who would let young boys read the comic books in store without purchasing them!  

Having a presence in Branson for sixty years, it was unfortunate to see Alexander Drug close in 1982. "Dad just wasn't in good health and would pass away in 1984," Bob recalled. "Mom lived another fourteen years and was laid to rest next to him at the Ozarks Memorial Park Cemetery. 

Ice cream cones are no longer a nickel, but those of us who are still here and remember and knew the Alexander Family will always treasure the great times and memories that their long-time business gave us. One of the great perks to growing up in a small town.