George W. Weston was born on February 24, 1837, in Hancock, New Hampshire, to William Weston and Mary Copeland. His father died on June 24, 1848, and his mother passed away on August 28, 1853.
He married Emelia J. Marshall on September 14, 1857, in Hancock, and they had two children: Ralph Marshall, born on November 16, 1858; and Wendell Maro, born on June 12, 1861. They moved to Low Moor, Iowa, in the late 1850s, and he worked as a farmer there. By 1860, he owned $2,500 of real estate and $1,000 of personal property. He was reportedly a conductor on the Underground Railroad.
He enlisted in the Union army on August 12, 1862, and he mustered in as a sergeant in Company C of the 26th Iowa Infantry three days later. As he explained in September 1862, he enlisted to secure "liberty for all mankind," and he believed "I shall make a good soldier." In January 1863, he confessed to his wife that he “hate[d] war [because] it is wicked.” He did “not like to talk or think of war, but of peace love and good will towards all.” He declared himself an “abolishionist,” and he bitterly denounced slavery. In April 1863, he insisted that “the people at the North are doomed and damned and will be eternaly damned” because of their complicity in slavery. He “believe[d] the union the world or the people in it is not worth saveing."
He was promoted to 1st lieutenant on February 27, 1863. He fell ill later that year, reportedly from “exposure and unwholesome food.” He returned home to recover, and he died of chronic diarrhea on August 18, 1863, in Low Moor, Iowa.