There were several Alderson family members named George. This is about Rev. John Alderson’s grandson George, son of Joseph Alderson (1771-1845) and his wife Mary “Polly” Newman Alderson (1769-1857).
Joseph and Polly are shown as members of Greenbrier Baptist Church in July 1833. Their children were grown by that time. This membership roster also shows their dates of death.
Here is Polly’s tombstone at Old Greenbrier Baptist Church Cemetery. It says, “Mary, Wife of Joseph Alderson, Fell asleep in Christ, April 13, 1857. Her age is given but is difficult to read. Some trees at Ancestry.com have posted her birthdate as May 3, 1769.
Joseph and Polly Alderson had many children, including George (1789-1871). Other children are named in Joseph’s will, which is at Ancestry.com in West Virginia, U.S. Wills and Probate Records, 1724-1985. 1
Col. George Alderson was one of the earliest settlers of Lookout, West Virginia. He is well-known in the Lookout/Ansted area as the founder of Jeanette Baptist Church and Jeanette Cemetery, both named for his first wife, Jeanette Creigh McCleary (1795-1835). His second wife was Eliza Davis (1813-1889). Eleven of his children are named on Col. George Alderson’s Find-a-Grave page.2 Twelve children are named in his will. 3
The paragraph below was posted on Findagrave and appears to be correct based on excerpts from History of Fayette County, West Virginia, by Peters and Carden, in the section on Lookout, pages 651-660. George Alderson is also mentioned on pages 166, 170, 178, 180, 185, 186 of that book.4
“Col. George Alderson was the son of Joseph and Polly (Newman) Alderson. George married his first wife Jennett C. McCleary (1795-1835) on July 8, 1813. She was the mother of 14 children. Colonel George Alderson was, for many years before the Civil War, toll collector for the James River and Kanawha Turnpike, now the Midland Trail. He would go on horseback from Western Virginia to Richmond to take the taxes he had collected for the state; and it was on one of these trips, he met Eliza Ann Davis, his second wife. He kept a stage stand at Lookout, Fayette County, and in 1844, Henry Clay was a guest at the Inn. Col. Alderson said to Clay, "What shall we name our baby boy?" Clay replied, "Name him for the two greatest men in the United States--yourself and myself." Hence the name, George and Henry Clay together was given the baby boy, and he carried it to manhood, but finally dropped writing Clay. Col. Alderson represented that part of Virginia in the Legislature and made several trips to the Capitol at Richmond."
—If you are related to this gifted and civic-minded man named Col.George Alderson of Lookout, West Virginia, I hope you will comment about your relationship to him.
Joseph Alderson. Will Books, 1777-1969; Will Book Index, 1777-1969; Author: West Virginia. County Court (Greenbrier County); Probate Place: Greenbrier, West Virginia
Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/199915514/george-alderson: accessed 18 January 2023), memorial page for COL George Alderson (20 Nov 1789–2 Jan 1871), Find a Grave Memorial ID 199915514, citing Jennette Cemetery, Lookout, Fayette County, West Virginia, USA; Maintained by Charlene Tyree Perry (contributor 49359796).
George Alderson. Will Books, 1832-1969; Author: West Virginia. County Court (Fayette County); Probate Place: Fayette, West Virginia
Ancestry.com. History of Fayette County, West Virginia [database on-line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
Original data:Peters, J. T.. History of Fayette County, West Virginia. Charleston, W. Va.: Jarrett Print. Co., 1926.