Alexander Hunter (1843- June 30, 1914) was an American soldier for the Confederate States Army, civil servant, and novelist who authored Johnny Reb and Billy Yank[1] and The Women of the Debatable Land.

[4] He lived during his youth at the Abingdon plantation in present-day Arlington County, Virginia and studied at private schools until the start of the American Civil War in 1861.

[10] Following Chancellorsville, Hunter joined Company H in the 4th Virginia Cavalry Regiment, also known as the "Black Horse Troop", on the recommendation of General Robert E.

[12] Following the end of the Civil War, Hunter found that Abingdon plantation, which he had inherited, had been confiscated by the United States Tax Commissioners in 1864.

He won his lands back after the (Bennett v. Hunter, 76 U.S. 326) case was decided by the Supreme Court of the United States on March 21, 1870.

[11][12][16] The National Museum of American History holds within its collections the shell jacket that he wore throughout most of the Civil War.