ALEXANDRIA, settled in 1858, established as a township June 15, 1866, was named in honor of Alexander Kinkead, because he and his brother William were its first settlers, coming from Maryland. The form of the name follows that of the large city in Egypt, which was founded in the year 332 B.C. by Alexander the Great. Fifteen other states have villages or cities of this name. The village of Alexandria was incorporated February 20, 1877, its charter as a city was adopted in 1908, and it was incorporated as a city in 1909. It was surveyed in 1866 and purchased in 1868 by W. E. Hicks, who established a mill, a hotel, a store, and the first newspaper, also donating property for a courthouse, a jail, and Methodist and Congregational churches; he served as first postmaster when the office was established in 1858. The first passenger train on the railroad reached this place November 5, 1878. The village was known as a summer resort during the 1870s.