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Bolton was the scion of a prominent family from  [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]] in Rapides Parish in Central Louisiana. His grandfather, George Washington Bolton (1841-1931), was a two-term member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1888 to 1896 and the House [[Speaker]] in the second term from 1892 to 1896 during the administration of the first [[Governor]] Murphy James Foster, Sr.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_PDFdocs/HouseMembership_History_CURRENT.pdf|title=Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1812 to 2024|publisher=Louisiana House of Representatives|accessdate=June 14, 2020}}</ref> The grandfather was a [[business]]man and banker who founded the former Rapides Bank and Trust Company in Alexandria, which later merged into Bank One Corporation. In 1900, he was the first president of the Louisiana Bankers Association. He was one of the founders of the large Emmanuel [[Southern Baptist|Baptist]] Church in downtown Alexandria. G. W. Bolton, a member of the Rapides Parish School Board] died about the time that his grandson Al was entering West End Elementary School.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lahistory.org/resources/dictionary-louisiana-biography/dictionary-louisiana-biography-b/|title=Bolton, George Washington|publisher=''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography'': Louisiana Historical Association|accessdate=June 13, 2020}}</ref>​

Bolton was the scion of a prominent family from  [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]] in Rapides Parish in Central Louisiana. His grandfather, George Washington Bolton (1841-1931), was a two-term member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1888 to 1896 and the House [[Speaker]] in the second term from 1892 to 1896 during the administration of the first [[Governor]] Murphy James Foster, Sr.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_PDFdocs/HouseMembership_History_CURRENT.pdf|title=Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1812 to 2024|publisher=Louisiana House of Representatives|accessdate=June 14, 2020}}</ref> The grandfather was a [[business]]man and banker who founded the former Rapides Bank and Trust Company in Alexandria, which later merged into Bank One Corporation. In 1900, he was the first president of the Louisiana Bankers Association. He was one of the founders of the large Emmanuel [[Southern Baptist|Baptist]] Church in downtown Alexandria. G. W. Bolton, a member of the Rapides Parish School Board] died about the time that his grandson Al was entering West End Elementary School.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lahistory.org/resources/dictionary-louisiana-biography/dictionary-louisiana-biography-b/|title=Bolton, George Washington|publisher=''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography'': Louisiana Historical Association|accessdate=June 13, 2020}}</ref>​

Bolton was a son of Roscoe Conkling Bolton and the former Merle Martin.<ref name=roscoe/> His name is derived from a combination of a paternal uncle, Albert Bolton, who died in 1882 shortly after his first birthday, and his mother's maiden name. Roscoe Conkling Bolton was an [[insurance]] agent in Alexandria, who established a company in 1911 that became in 1926 Alexander & Bolton. The firm originally operated in the Rapides Bank Building but acquired its own facility in 1961 on Jackson Street.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cenlafocus.com/people/roscoe-and-sue-bolton/|author=Holly Jo Linzay|title=People: Roscoe and Sue Bolton|date=May 9, 2011|publisher=cenlafocus.com|accessdate=June 13, 2020}}</ref> Alexander & Bolton operated after 1933 under the supervision of Bolton's older brother, Roscoe A. Bolton (1913–2012). The company was sold in 2008 and became Brown & Brown, Inc. Roscoe A. Bolton was hence an insurance agent for seventy-five years;<ref name=roscoe>Obituary of Roscoe A. Bolton, Hixonbrothers.com, accessed=April 9, 2014; material no longer accessible on-line.</ref> in 2008, with seventy-seven years tenure, he was the longest-serving member in the world of Rotary International.<ref>Billy Gunn, "Roscoe Bolton of Alexandria, world's longest serving Rotarian, dies at 99," ''The Alexandria Town Talk,'' September 27, 2014; no longer accessible on-line.</ref> Al Bolton also had a second brother, Fender Wade Bolton.<ref name=obit/>​

Bolton was a son of Roscoe Conkling Bolton and the former Merle Martin.<ref name=roscoe/> His name is derived from a combination of a paternal uncle, Albert Bolton, who died in 1882 shortly after his first birthday, and his mother's maiden name. Roscoe Conkling Bolton was an [[insurance]] agent in Alexandria, who established a company in 1911 that became in 1926 Alexander & Bolton. The firm originally operated in the Rapides Bank Building but acquired its own facility in 1961 on Jackson Street.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cenlafocus.com/people/roscoe-and-sue-bolton/|author=Holly Jo Linzay|title=People: Roscoe and Sue Bolton|date=May 9, 2011|publisher=cenlafocus.com|accessdate=June 13, 2020}}</ref> Alexander & Bolton operated after 1933 under the supervision of Bolton's older brother, Roscoe A. Bolton (1913–2012). The company was sold in 2008 and became Brown & Brown, Inc. Roscoe A. Bolton was hence an insurance agent for seventy-five years;<ref name=roscoe>Obituary of Roscoe A. Bolton, Hixonbrothers.com, accessed April 9, 2014; material no longer accessible on-line.</ref> in 2008, with seventy-seven years tenure, he was the longest-serving member in the world of Rotary International.<ref>Billy Gunn, "Roscoe Bolton of Alexandria, world's longest serving Rotarian, dies at 99," ''The Alexandria Town Talk,'' September 27, 2014; no longer accessible on-line.</ref> Al Bolton also had a second brother, Fender Wade Bolton.<ref name=obit/>​

Another uncle, James Wade Bolton (1869-1936), was also a banker and school board member. Cousins [[James C. Bolton]] and [[Robert H. Bolton]], sons of James W. Bolton, continued the family banking and civic heritage. Al Bolton graduated in June 1942 from Bolton High School in Alexandria's Garden District. The school is named for his uncle James, who was an 18-year president of the Rapides Parish School Board.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lahistory.org/resources/dictionary-louisiana-biography/dictionary-louisiana-biography-b/|title=Bolton, James Wade|publisher=Louisiana Historical Association: ''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography''|accessdate=June 14, 2020}}</ref>

Another uncle, James Wade Bolton (1869-1936), was also a banker and school board member. Cousins [[James C. Bolton]] and [[Robert H. Bolton]], sons of James W. Bolton, continued the family banking and civic heritage. Al Bolton graduated in June 1942 from Bolton High School in Alexandria's Garden District. The school is named for his uncle James, who was an 18-year president of the Rapides Parish School Board.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lahistory.org/resources/dictionary-louisiana-biography/dictionary-louisiana-biography-b/|title=Bolton, James Wade|publisher=Louisiana Historical Association: ''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography''|accessdate=June 14, 2020}}</ref>