along of prep phr Also aphet ’long of chiefly NEng, Midl, Sth old-fash or obs
1 also all along of: Because of. [OE gelang, ME ilong, along, long, etc; cf OED3 along adj.1 “Now chiefly arch. and regional. . . After Middle English only in weakened use as a compound preposition, with of (also occasionally on, †with, etc.),” long adj.2 “Obs. (arch. and regional in later use),” EDD along of, on, with prep. phr., long of (at long adv.2 2(1)(a))]
1832 New Engl. Mag. 3.472, Yet, strange as it may seem to them, it has happened all along of my advice. 1862 Winthrop John Brent 190 OR, We was a little late one morning, along of our horses havin’ strayed off from camp. 1875(1886) Woolson Castle Nowhere 130 Mackinac Is. MI, He took all we had, and we’ve gone cold and hungry ’long of him. 1878 Eggleston Roxy 383 sIN, Thar’s even Jim McGowan wont look at me no more. An’ it’s all along of you and your man. 1887 Freeman Humble Romance 258 MA, It wa’n’t right to deceive you, but it was all along of my worryin’ an’ my thinkin’ so much of you. 1903 Wiggin Rebecca 67 ME, Rebecca never’ll come to grief along of her beauty, that’s certain. 1909 DN 3.346 eAL, wGA, “It was long o’ them Smith boys that we didn’t come on time.” Rare. 1912 Green VA Folk-Speech. 1931 AmSp 7.91 eKY, I came early long of wantin’ to get it done afore the rain. 1936 Morehouse Rain on Just 79 NC, Not one of us ought to be at licker. . . Rease just now buried. Dead along of that same poison. 1939 Hench Coll. cVA, All along of is used in Albermarle County, Va. to mean “because of, dependent upon.”
2 Beside, along with. [OED3 along of (at along adj.2, prep., and adv. P.3) 1838→, ’long of (at ’long adv.2 P) 1861→, EDD along of (at along adv.1 6.(1)(a)) ]
1858 Atlantic Mth. 2.421 wCT, She put her head on the window-sill along of mine. 1875 Ibid 35.707 LA [Black], I was too little, an’ was let run along of de odder pickaninnies. 1879 Ibid 44.206 ME, He used to come over a good deal last winter, and go out after cod ’long o’ father and me. 1884 Murfree TN Mts. 262, ’Pears ter me ez ye mought hev brought him hyar ter eat his supper along of we-uns. 1891 Century Illustr. Mag. 42.108 GA, Crab-apples is things I despises myself without they ’re bi’led along of a whole lot of sugar. 1903 DN 2.299 Cape Cod MA (as of 1850s), Long of: Along with. 1931 AmSp 6.272 KY Mts, Go along of me as fur as my cabin. 1939 Lanham Stricklands 185 OK, I sure can’t take him back to the hills along of me. 1942 Sat. Eve. Post 5 Sept 53, Just a ole dawg come here as a pup along of a swipe named One-eye Tuppy.
3 In the matter of, concerning.
1868 Galaxy 6.152 NEng, Kit an’ me made some calculations ’long of the crops, an’ I’m pretty sure we can promise that safe enough. 1893 New Engl. Mag. 15.490, I might have known she didn’t mean it, after the kindness she’d showed me along of mother’s funeral.
4 Used in place of with in certain phrasal verbs and set phrases.
1883 Atlantic Mth. 52.550 eTN, It’s this hyar a-foolin’ along of Old Sledge an’ sech ez calls the sperits up. 1883 Harris Nights with Remus 200 GA [Black], Don’t bodder ’long er we all, Sis Cow. 1887 Century Illustr. Mag. 33.442 GA, I got no time to be foolin’ ’long of you now. You go to grass. 1890 Ibid 41.288 nGA, What’s the matter along of him now?