Singleton and Related Genealogy Pages
A history of many families.
1849 - 1921 (72 years)| Name | David Wells ALDERMAN [3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9] | |
| Suffix | Sr. | |
| Birth | 1849 | Duplin County, North Carolina  |
| Gender | Male | |
| HIST | He was the “father” of the little town of Alcolu, South Carolina. He was the founder and president of D. W. Alderman & Sons Company, a large lumber corporation in Alcolu, South Carolina- also presidcent of Alcolu Railroad and the Alderman Department Store in Manning, South Carolina. founder of the Alcolu community There are 3 versions of the origin of the name ‘Alcolu’. One version is that is was named for D. W. Alderman’s three daughters. “Al” is supposed to have come from Aileen, “co” from Cora, and “lu” from Lula. Another version is that it was from Alderman Lumber Company, “Al” from Alderman, “lu” from lumber, and “co” from company. The third version is the correct one. “Al” is for Alderman, “co” is for Coldwell, and “lu” from Lula. Coldwell was a partner in business with Alderman at the time the village was named. He was the founder of the Alcolu village in South Carolina. Alcolu prominent at Clarendon County Museum Robert J. Baker / The Item Alcolu prominent at Clarendon County Museum Woody Haynes points to a plat of Alcolu as the town existed in the early 1900s. Robert J. Baker bbaker@theitem.com MANNING - Local residents will have four hours starting at 10 a.m. today to view the Clarendon County Museum and History Center's newest exhibit, which pays homage to Alcolu and the Alderman Lumber Co. that built the town. The grand opening and ribbon cutting for the exhibit will be at 10:30 a.m., and a reunion of Alcolu residents past and present will follow the four-hour event at 3 p.m. "(Today) will be all about the town of Alcolu at the museum," said Woody Haynes, one of the exhibit's organizers, as he discussed various parts of the Alcolu room Thursday. "We have everything from pictures from that time on a community wall," Haynes said, "to maps of the area, along with some items from that era." The museum has been planning the exhibit for nearly six months to look back on the small "company town" created in 1889 by David Wells Alderman "to support the logging and mining operations of his company, D.W. Alderman and Sons," said organizer Bob Sullivan. The Aldermans had founded a lumber mill on June Burn Road in 1885, and the purchase of a sawmill several years later led to the founding of the town itself. The Alcolu Railroad followed soon after to help with logging efforts in the area. Alderman, who had a penchant for wordplay, named the town by combining "Al" for his family name; "Co" for Coldwell, a partner; and "Lu," his youngest daughter. Today's exhibit will feature such nuggets as well as detail more than just the town's humble beginnings. "Featured will be doctors' equipment, ledgers and other business mementos of the Alderman company as well as a variety of household and commercial products used in the Alcolu community," Sullivan said. "There will also be photos of Alcolu residents involved with the mill, the mill itself and the community of Alcolu." Sullivan said the Historical Society, which operates the museum, collected all the materials for the exhibit from various donors, and final touches were still being added Friday. "The exhibit is made possible by loans of materials from residents in the area and those who grew up in Alcolu and moved away," he said. Unfortunately, moving away is what many former Alcolu residents have done throughout the past half-century. The mill itself remained through two renovations - one in 1931 due to a big fire that caused $200,000 in damage - until it was sold in 1947 to the Southern Coatings and Chemical Co. of Sumter. Aside from the mill, the Aldermans owned a company store and hosiery mill in Alcolu and opened a Belk "20 stores in one" in Manning during their prominence as well. Clarendon County Archives and History Center Executive Director Nancy Cave said the Alcolu exhibit is the first the museum hopes to utilize to highlight communities throughout Clarendon County. The upcoming exhibit is free and open to the public. Cost for the reunion is $15, and reservations must be made with Jean DuBose Hodge by calling (803) 469-0084. Reach Robert J. Baker at (803) 435-8511. Posted in Local news, News on Saturday, September 10, 2011 Proposed Change: Dr. Robert Lewis ALDERMAN (I108726) Tree: Singleton and Related Families Link: http://singletonfamily.org//getperson.php?personID=I108726&tree=1 Description: The CO in Alcolu was for Algernon E Colwell who was a partner of D.W, Alderman and postmaster of Alcolu Post Office. He married D. W.'s sister SUSAN and sold his fourth share in DW Alderman Company in January, 1893. He then managed the Alderman Lumber Company at Georgetown, SC. I found no one named COLD-well. Tom Tom Fetters tfetters1@comcast.net Proposed Change: David Wells ALDERMAN, Sr. (I127904) Tree: Singleton and Related Families Link: http://singletonfamily.org//getperson.php?personID=I127904&tree=1 Description: The lumber plant had fires many times over the years, but the BIG fire was in October of 1920. This caused a loss of $400,000 by first estimates. The planning mill was destroyed along with a number pf lumber sheds, and the loss of "several million feet of lumber", as well as the loss of six loaded boxcars for the Atlantic Coast Line. This was on either October 30 or October 31 which ever was the Friday before November 4,1920. The mill was rebuilt in summer-fall of 1921 at a cost of $150,000. They added a modern ginnery and an oil mill as well as a fertilizer mixing plant. Tom Tom Fetters tfetters1@comcast.net My source was a Northwestern Lumberman magazine article (July, 1890) that briefly mentioned Mr. Colwell. It stated that he married D. W. Alderman's sister, Susan. and moved on. So, no nicknames, or info on other marriages. The principal story was about the saw mill operations at Alcolu, Trio, and Georgetown that were Alderman based. I had a long discussion with Robert in Roanoke yesterday and he was amazed at all the information I have found. I would mention the stop at Gibbons, and he said he had dated a Gibbons girl long ago. I got the photo of the log train and it is very good, but the original may be sharper. I will try to see if the MannIng museum has a print. Tom [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11] | |
| Occupation | one of Sumter District’s leading businessmen [3] | |
| _UID | D1EC0B00CE794F8BA1BD214F1BEE364B41C3 | |
| Death | 16 Sep 1921 | at his home, Alcolu, South Carolina |
| Burial | 18 Sep 1921 | Wells Chapel Church, near Harrell’s Store in Duplin County, North Carolina [12] |
| Person ID | I127904 | Singleton and Related Families |
| Last Modified | 19 Sep 2025 | |
| Father | ALDERMAN | |
| _UID | 80F1723B593044DD951D4370C3C8B082EA7E | |
| _UID | 80F1723B593044DD951D4370C3C8B082EA7E | |
| Family ID | F91256 | Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family | Priscilla Martha “Martha” WELLS d. Mar 1919 | |||||||||||||||||||
| _UID | 416BDC4898364EA5A95069D7E8F2BA2F8D8A | |||||||||||||||||||
| _UID | 416BDC4898364EA5A95069D7E8F2BA2F8D8A | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Family ID | F87868 | Group Sheet | Family Chart | ||||||||||||||||||
| Last Modified | 23 Mar 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||
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