Sidney Belle Alexander (circa 1864-1945) and Emma J. Alexander (circa 1865-1947) were born enslaved at Riverside, the Farnsley-Moremen Landing. Carrie Elizabeth Alexander (1872-1947) was born after the family was freed and moved to Louisville. Sidney Belle taught at the Eastern Colored School, which was in the Smoketown Neighborhood. The school was renamed Booker T. Washington School. According to staff rosters, she was there at least from 1886-1918. Sidney was a member of the Woman’s Improvement Club, a club for women who strove to better their community. Mamie Steward and Georgia Nugent were also members (we’ve featured them before). In 1884, Emma was valedictorian of the first graduating class of Colored High School (now Central High School). The graduating class consisted of 7 students. Emma was a teacher at the Main Street Colored School and Western Colored School. She was elected to the school board, and she was a charter member of the Charity Pity Literary Club. In 1916, Emma received a Life Certificate from the State Department of Education for 20 years of service. In 1889, Carrie graduated from Colored High School. The graduating class consisted of 14 students including Georgia Nugent and Ellen Bullock (we’ve featured before). Carrie graduated from Fisk University, and she taught English at Central Colored High School for 40 years. She was a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and a deaconess at the Plymouth Congregational Church.
All three sisters remained single. From 1899 to their deaths, they lived in a home at 2502 Magazine Street in the Russell Neighborhood. Sidney Belle died on October 12, 1945 at the age of 83. She was buried with her parents in the Alexander plot in Eastern Cemetery, which is located in Cave Hill Corner. Emma died on May 12, 1947, also at the age of 83. She was buried in Section B, Range 10ft Road, Lot 9 in Eastern Cemetery as the family plot was full. Carrie died just two months after Emma on June 14, 1947 at the age of 73. She was buried next to Emma. The graves of Emma and Carrie are unmarked. The photo of Carrie is from “Two Centuries of Black Louisville.”
