ALEXANDER CITY

city, Tallapoosa county, east central Alabama, U.S. Early settlement began in 1836 on the site of a Tuckabatchee Indian village. It was known as Youngville until 1873, when it was incorporated and named for E.P. Alexander, president of the Central of Georgia Railroad. To the south, Martin Dam on the Tallapoosa River provides industrial power, chiefly for textile milling. Production of ornamental ironwork is also important. Lake Martin, formed by the dam (1926), has more than 700 mi (1,125 km) of recreational shoreline. Nearby is Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, where Andrew Jackson's forces defeated the Creek Indians in the War of 1812. Pop. (1990) 14,917.