The Ulysses Grant McAlexander Collection documents McAlexander's military activities, particularly his involvement in the Second Battle of the Marne in France in July 1918, his training at West Point and his years as commandant of cadets at Oregon Agricultural College.

The collection contains eleven series. Series 1 includes items from McAlexander's student days at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Series 2 pertains to World War I and the history of the 38th regiment and includes of a typed manuscript by McAlexander about the Battle of the Marne. Series 3 contains correspondence and other materials pertaining to McAlexander's service at Oregon Agricultural College and various gifts to the college. Series 4 contains several published military histories, including McAlexander's 1905 History of the Thirteenth Regiment.

Series 5 is a scrapbook that contains photographs of McAlexander, clippings, his military identification and passports, and other memorabilia. Series 6 consists of commissions, citations, certificates and awards received by McAlexander, primarily for his military service. Series 7 consists of two charcoal drawings of McAlexander, one of them made in Paris. Series 8 consists of McAlexander's military medals. Series 9 includes newspapers and magazines collected by or about McAlexander, including 16 months of The Stars and Stripes (Feb. 1918- June 1919) and a 1919 VFW newspaper titled Rock of the Marne.

Series 10 consists of military maps pertaining to the Battle of the Marne. Series 11 includes photographs of Fort Missoula, Montana (1889), the presentation of the Distinguished Service Cross to McAlexander, portraits of McAlexander, and the 38th Infantry boxing team (1942).

Part of the collection was transferred to the University Archives from the former Horner Museum in July 1996. Included was a drawing and several maps of the Battle of the Marne, several published military histories, various citations and certificates, and McAlexander's West Point account ledger folio. Many artifacts donated by McAlexander or his family remain a part of the Horner Collection.

Military hero known as the Rock of the Marne, McAlexander served as Commandant of Cadets at Oregon Agricultural College from 1907 to 1911 and again from 1915 to 1916.

Major-General Ulysses Grant McAlexander was born 30 August 1864 at Dundas, Minnesota and graduated from West Point in 1887. He served at Fort Meade in the Dakota Territory and Fort Custer and Fort Missoula, Montana. McAlexander fought in Cuba during the Spanish American War and served in the Phillipines from 1900 to 1907.

In 1907, he was appointed Commandant of Cadets and Professor of Military Science and Tactics at Oregon Agricultural College. He was greatly admired by the students and the 1912 Orange was dedicated to him. The armory, built in 1911, was also dedicated to him and in 1971 was renamed the McAlexander Fieldhouse.

In July 1918, Colonel McAlexander commanded the greatly outnumbered 38th U.S. Infantry Regiment against German forces at the second Battle of the Marne, for which he was promoted to Brigadier General, awarded many military honors, and became known as the "Rock of the Marne".

McAlexander retired from the Army in 1924 and chose Newport, Oregon as his home. Oregon State Agricultural College conferred an honorary doctorate upon him in 1930. He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 1934 Republican gubernatorial primary election. McAlexander died at his home in Portland, Oregon, on 18 September 1936 and was buried in the Arlington National Cemetery.

The Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) Records (RG 58) include records from McAlexander's years as Commandant of Cadets at Oregon Agricultural College. The Memorabilia Collection file on McAlexander (MC - McAlexander, Ulysses Grant) contains biographical information, a list of his commissions and citations, clippings and other articles, and a map showing the location of his grave site in the Arlington National Cemetery. Harriet's Collection #908 (U. G. McAlexander) includes photographs of a troop transport ship in Tampa, June 1898; the bronze bust of McAlexander; a Memorial Union display case with McAlexander artifacts (1939); and a painting made of McAlexander in 1918 in Paris. Photographs of McAlexander in the Military Photographic Collection (P 2) include portraits, on horseback, and with his wife.

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