Biography of Thomas L. Woodson - Monroe Co. WV The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume III, pg. 602 THOMAS L. WOODSON. One of the leading citizens and progressive business men of Alderson is Thomas L. Wood- son, active vice president, manager and treasurer of the Woodson-Mahler Grocery Company, wholesale dealers. Dur- ing a long and active career he has been the architect of his own fortune in building up a solid structure of success, and of more recent years he has come favorably before the people as a champion of modern improvements, particularly those pertaining to good roads. Mr. Woodson was born on a farm in Monroe County, West Virginia, September 21, 1863. Zacharia Augustus Woodson, his father was a native of old Virginia, and came to what is now Monroe County, West Virginia, where he engaged in farming and operated a flour mill on Wolf Creek. He was a quiet, unassuming man and unobtrusive, and was what might be termed well-read, having an edu- cation far above the average. He was a Baptist in religion and a democrat in politics, but was not active in a political way. Mr. Woodson married Sarah Alderson, a daughter of Capt. Jack Alderson, who was a son of the old legislator, George Alderson, or "Kanawha George," as he was more familiarly known, and a grandson of Elder John Alderson, the pioneer, whose name is indelibly impressed upon the history of Southeastern West Virginia. Zacharia A. and Sarah (Alderson) Woodson had a large family of children. The parents are both deceased. Thomas L. Woodson when a very small lad moved with his parents to a farm in Summers County, on the Greenbrier River. The Town of Talcott is located on a part of this property. Here Thomas L. grew to young manhood, receiv- ing a public school education, and at the age of nineteen years went to Sewell, Fayette County, where he remained for about ten years, first serving as a clerk in the coal commissary of the Longdale Iron Company and later being promoted to the position of. buyer of this department. He then became traveling salesman for a Charleston wholesale grocery house, but about two years later resigned and ac- cepted a position as traveling salesman for a wholesale dry goods and furnishing establishment of Baltimore. Some seven years later, in 1910, having married Miss Nadine Worthington Dorsey, of Louisville, Kentucky, he accepted a more remunerative position as manager and buyer for the New River Company, a holding company for several con- cerns in Fayette County, West Virginia, which community continued to be the home of Mr. and Mrs. Woodson for about ten years. In 1910 he organized the Woodson-Mah- ler Grocery Company at Alderson, bought out the old job- bing concern known as the Merchants' Grocery Company and also absorbed, some time later, the Thompson Grocery Company, a wholesale enterprise. This consolidation be- came the Woodson-Mahler Grocery Company, wholesale dealers, with a capitalization of $200,000. July 1, 1922, this concern was recapitalized with a $500,000 capital, under the firm name of Woodson, Prince & Company. This concern has greatly expanded and is beyond question the largest concern of its kind in this entire section, giving employ- ment to some thirty or more people and having very large annual sales. A republican in politics, Mr, Woodson has taken an active interest in public matters and served one year as mayor of Alderson and several years as chairman of the Republican Executive Committee of Greenbrier County. Few men in Southeastern West Virginia have sacrificed as much in time and money for public improve- ments as has Mr. Woodson, this particularly applying to good roads, a movement which is one of his greatest hob- bies. Mr. Woodson is a member of the board of directors of the American Wholesale Grocers Association, whose general offices are located at Jacksonville, Florida. The American Wholesale Grocers Association was formerly the Southern Wholesale Grocers Association. Submitted by Valerie F. Crook **************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. Files may be printed or copied for personal use only. ****************************************************************