Born in Augusta County, Virginia, George William Imboden (June 25, 1836 - January 8, 1922) became a distinguished attorney, Confederate soldier, and a leading citizen of Ansted. After attending Staunton Academy, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1858. In 1859, he married Mary Frances Tyree, daughter of an Ansted innkeeper. Imboden enlisted in the Southern service on April 17, 1861. He rose to the rank of colonel by December 1862, when he took command of the 18th Virginia Calvary which fought at Chancellorsville and in many other battles. He was seriously wounded at Gordonsville, Virginia.

Moving to Fayette County in 1870, Imboden actively promoted industrialization of the two Virginias. His older brother and business partner, Gen. John D. Imboden, had already established himself politically in Virginia. George acted as attorney and served as a director of the Gauley Mountain Coal Company, the Loup Creek Colliery, and the Deepwater Railway.

Imboden served Ansted and Fayette County from 1870 to 1922, holding office in the House of Delegates (1876), as president of the Fayette County Commission (1881-85), first mayor of Ansted (1891-92), and town recorder (1891-1907). A tall, slender man with piercing eyes and a no-nonsense military demeanor, he married Angia M. Dickinson, daughter of a Fayette County pioneer in 1869, after the death of his first wife. George W. Imboden died at home and was buried in Confederate gray in Westlake Cemetery. His home in Ansted, known as Contentment, is a National Register property that now serves as a Fayette County museum.