William Alexander Graham was a white attorney and politician who served as governor of North Carolina from 1845 to 1849. He was educated at a Hillsborough preparatory school and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, practiced law in Hillsborough, and began serving in public office in the 1830s. He served in the North Carolina state legislature and as a U.S. Senator before his election as governor. Following his gubernatorial tenure, Graham was appointed by President Millard Fillmore to serve as Secretary of the Navy, ran unsuccessfully as the vice-presidential nominee of the Whig Party in 1852, and served in the North Carolina State Senate. As Navy Secretary, he was influential in the sending of the Perry Expedition to Japan.
Graham was an enslaver and plantation owner. He espoused pro-slavery views and positions prior to and during the Civil War, and voted in favor of secession in 1861. Once the war broke out, he supported the Confederate cause and was a member of the Confederate government. Graham opposed emancipation and became an outspoken advocate of white supremacy after the war. He also served as a prosecutor during the impeachment trial of Governor William W. Holden. Graham passed away in 1875 and is buried in Hillsborough.