Alexander C Getty was born on February 16, 1846 in Ballymena, County Antrim in what is now Northern Ireland. He was the sixth of the nine children of James, Sr and Matilda (McCaughey) Getty.

Alexander was six years old when he  arrived with his parents and six siblings at the port of New York on October 2, 1852 aboard the the SS William Rathbone.

He died on November 5, 1864 at the age of 18 after serving in the U.S. Army in the Civil War.

"On March 19, 1864, he volunteered at Wright Township, Hillsdale County, to serve as a soldier in the Army of The United States of America. He was described as 18 years old, 5 feet 10 inches high, with hazel eyes, brown hair, and light complexion. He gave his occupation as blacksmith.

A blacksmith was a tradesman, an artist in his own right. In addition to shoeing horses, he manufactured parts from iron and wood to be used on wagons and machinery. During the Civil War he was very much a part of the army.

Alexander was mustered in at Detroit on April 16, 1864, into Co. B of the 6th. Regiment of Heavy Artillery of Michigan. He and his brother, William, were both involved in the siege of Fort Morgan, Alabama.

It was during this siege that he was wounded and as a result of those wounds, contracted meningitis. He died in the regimental hospital at Mobile Point, Alabama, on November 5, 1864.

Alexander was eighteen years old when he enlisted, and still only eighteen when he fought in one of the major battles of the Civil War. He was only a boy when he died, never to see his home and family again. "