Alex was a devoutly religious man. Many of his grandchildren recalled that he was a lay preacher in the Methodist Church. His religious activism is documented by several Gloucester Courthouse records: (1) On June 30, 1879, Jonathan Ors & wife granted for $1 one acre of land to Alexander Emerson, et. tal., on which to build St. Andrews Church. (2) In the Gloucester County Land Book, Alexander Emmerson & others are listed as trustees of St. Andrews M.E. Church South from 1880 to 1908 (the years of 1882,1885, and 1886 are omitted.). [In some earlier writings, 1908 was given as the date of Alexander’s death; this was based upon the Land Book listing him as a trustee until that date. However, other information leads to an earlier date for his death. It seems that those maintaining the records at the courthouse simply entered the previous year’s data until they were informed of changes. This is not an unusual circumstance.] Apparently, Alex was a founding member and a lifelong supporter of St. Andrews which was a mission of New Hope Methodist Church. St. Andrews was located 13 miles north of Gloucester Courthouse; the church no longer exists, but its cemetery is still maintained.

Alexander Emerson died in 1892; this date is based on an entry in the 1900 census in which Miss Kate listed “number of years married” as 18 (1874+18=1892). It is thought that Alex is buried in an unmarked grave at the old New Hope Methodist Cemetery. (Now it is the New Hope Memorial Baptist Cemetery.)