Alfred G. Ward was born on August 10, 1840, in Alabama, to Edward and Adele Ward. His father was a farmer. Ward grew up in Greene County, Alabama, and by 1860, he was working as a clerk in Greensboro, Alabama. He enlisted in the Confederate army on August 9, 1861, and he mustered in as a private in the 5^th Alabama Infantry. His regimental colonel described him as a “man of high moral character, a Christian gentleman and a brave and skillful soldier.”

 

The regiment took part in the Battle of Seven Pines, the Battle of Antietam, the Battle of Fredericksburg, and the Battle of Chancellorsville. He was wounded at Seven Pines and shot in the head at Chancellorsville. He survived the injury, and Union soldiers captured him soon after the battle. He was eventually exchanged, and he was reportedly “unfit for field duty.” The Confederate army detailed him to work in Demopolis, Alabama. Union forces captured him in May 1865, and he received a parole at Meridian, Mississippi, on May 12, 1865.

 

Ward settled in Mobile, Alabama, after the war, and he married Gabriella Johnston there on April 18, 1866. They had at least four children Katherine, born around 1867; Adele, born around 1870; Alfred, born around 1873; and Benjamin, born around 1882. He worked as a shoe salesman, and by 1870, he owned $4,000 of real estate. They employed at least one Black domestic servant. His wife died sometime in the late 1800s, and he eventually remarried. By 1900, he was working as a coal dealer. He passed away on October 27, 1908.

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