(Photo by Calvin Shepherd - Use By Permission)
Alderson West Virginia - A History
Alderson Community
Early Exploration
Baughman's Fort
Early Growth
Post Offices
Military History 2 3
Bridges
Roads
Railroads
Alderson’s Train Depot
Churches 2 3 4 5 6
Schools 2 3 4 5 6
Political History
Annexation / N. Alderson
City Services
Utilities 2
Alderson's Newspapers
Business
Banks
Milling
Livestock Market
Nash
Stone Quarries
Acme Limestone
Lumber
Women’s Prison
Alderson's Fair
Camp Greenbrier
The Alderson Lion
Well Known Women
Who's Who In America
Census Statistics
The Greenbrier River
Acknowledgement: Kenneth D. Swope
A
history
of
this
kind
could
not
be
written
without
the
help
of
many
people.
As
various
events
and
subjects
are
recounted
I
have
tried
to
credit
those
who
have
furnished
information,
lent
me
books
or
documents,
or
written
a
chronicle of various kinds. However, there are several who must be thanked for special help.
Joseph
N.
Alderson,
my
father-in-law,
has
lent
me
his
fine
collection
of
papers
and
valuable
books.
Mrs.
Agnes
Cooke
has
helped
me
by
loan
of
records
and
has
given
me
information
about
several
subjects.
Mrs.
Ashworth
of
the
West
Virginia
Department
of
Archives
and
History
directed
me
to
fine
sources
of
information,
made
copies
of
records
and
looked
up
references.
E.
R.
(Pike)
Fletcher,
Jr.
has
been
of
great
help
in
records
of
war
veterans,
as
has
Walter
B.
Rogers,
Jr.
Miss
Hallie
Jones
and
Roy
Coffmann
of
the
Alderson
schools
also
helped
me.
Rodgers
McVey
gave
me
a
mass
of
information.
The
Reverend
John
Wagster,
the
Reverend
Elwin
Roberts
and
several
other
persons
connected with the churches cooperated.
Tracy
Leach,
Carl
Bivens,
J.
Frank
Nash,
Charles
D.
Horn,
Miss
Gladys
Bowman,
J.
Herbert
Jones,
Miss
Crelia
A.
Jones,
Richard
.
Weikel
all
gave
help.
Duncan
Johnston
gave
a
lot
of
information
about
the
Post
Office
and
newspapers.
E.
W.
Cooper
and
staff
of
the
Greenbrier
County
Board
of
Education
assisted
me.
Cooper
Dawson
furnished Camp Greenbrier data. There are so many I cannot list them all.
My
wife,
Frances
Alderson
Swope,
who
loves
Alderson
with
all
her
heart,
has
edited,
corrected
and
revised
this
history. She amassed much of the information at Kanawha County Public Library. She is the co-author of this history.
Kenneth D. Swope, Lewisburg, West Virginia - July, 1964
Conclusion
The
writer
assures
the
reader
this
history
contains
errors.
Those
of
commission
have
been
made
through
ignorance
or
incorrect
information.
Errors
of
omission
are
for
the
same
reasons,
or
lack
of
space
or
lack
of
time
or
materials
for
research.
This
history
was
written
at
the
request
of
Greenbrier
Historical
Society.
Of
course,
the
writer
received
no
financial
remuneration.
It
has
been
an
interesting
and
historically
profitable
experience
delving
into
the
past
of
his
home
town.
Those
who
may
feel
persons
or
events
should
have
had
a
place,
or
more
space,
please
add
your
chronicle to this one. - Kenneth D. Swope
The contents contained in this series is copyrighted and the sole property of The Greenbrier Historical Society - Lewisburg, WV Used by permission - November 18, 2008
Index
““But in my mind, she is restored, and I’m a child again,
To walk the streets with no shoes on, and play all day,
with friends”. - Barry Worrell
This
history
is
a
compilation
of
several
sources.
The
majority
of
the
text
is
from
the
1964
publication
of
“The
Journal
Of
The
Greenbrier
Historical
Society
on
Alderson,
West
Virginia",
by
Kenneth
D.
Swope,
and
is
no
longer
in
print.
However,
it
is
fortunate
that
permission
to
use
it
here
has
been
granted
by
The
Greenbrier
Historical
Society
in
Lewisburg,
West
Virginia.
I
wish
to
thank
Jim
Talbert
and
the
G.
H.
S.
for
their
permission to
use
the
material.
The
complete
text
of
the
journal
is
intact,
while
pictures
from
Thomas
Dixon,
Margaret
Hambrick,
Barbara
Hullings,
Ward
Parker,
Tom
Roush,
Barry
Worrell,
U.
S.
Library
of
Congress,
old
postcards
and
miscellaneous
sources,
have
been
placed
through
out
to
add
relevancy
to
this
presentation.
There
is
additional
information
that
is
italicized
to
distinguish
it
from
the
original
text
of
Mr.
Swope’s
work.
Also,
I
have
also
added
a
few
pages
of
history
not
included
in
the
Mr.
Swope’s
Journal.
I
do
not
feel
this
is
a
betrayal
of
the
integrity
of
Mr.
Swope’s
work
for
he
invites
external
involvement
with additions to his history at the end of his acknowledgement below.
This
work
covers
the
time
span
from
1671
to
1964,
but
since
1964,
major
changes
have
taken
place
in
Alderson,
as
it
has
in
many
small
towns
all
over
the
country.
However,
someone
else
will
have
to
write
that
history.
Alderson
is
not
the
same
little
town
it
was
many
years
ago
and
certainly
not
the
way
I
remembered
it
growing
up,
but
it
still
has
charm,
evidence
of
restoration
and
renewal,
and
even
a
certain
degree
of
celebrity
that
you
will
find
as you read these pages. I hope you find value in this history and I dedicated it to all who love Alderson as I do.
The History of Alderson, West Virginia
From The Journal Of The Greenbrier Historical Society On Alderson, West Virginia
Written by Kenneth D. Swope - Compiled and Transcribed by Barry Worrell