Town file
Beckley, West Virginia
Beckley, West Virginia (Raleigh County, West Virginia) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 304, "For Love Of My Cousin" (28 July 2022). This episode of Small Town Murder is set in Beckley, West Virginia, the county seat of Raleigh County in the south of the state, but it tells two cases from West Virginia: a 1988 murder in Beckley and a 1969 fire in Parkersburg.
- Town
- Beckley
- County
- Raleigh County
- State
- West Virginia
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 304
- Approximate location
- 37.773, -81.162
Episode 304 / 28 July 2022 / 157 min / full
For Love Of My Cousin
"James: 'Beckley, we're gonna go to Beckley, it's in southern West Virginia'; in Raleigh County, area code 304" about 0:05:34
The case: Murder of Virginia 'Penny' Bennett (May 9, 1988); 1969 Parkersburg house fire and the Bally family deaths (June 8, 1969). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2022
- Population
- 15,805
- Median age
- 40
- Median household income
- $33,616
- Median home value
- $74,600
- Two-bedroom rent
- $693
- Cost of living
- 70
- Religious
- 31%
- Property crime
- ▲ almost three times the national average
- Violent crime
- ▲ almost three times the national average
History, in brief
- Beckley is named in honour of John James Beckley, the first Clerk of the House of Representatives and first Librarian of Congress. about 0:07:10
- His son Alfred Beckley, a US Army lieutenant and brigadier general of the Virginia militia, founded and named it; it was founded in 1838 but for a long time existed only on paper, and Alfred was jeered at for his 'paper town'. about 0:08:06
- It was sometimes called Beckleyville, and was named the county seat in 1850; it was originally in Fayette County, Virginia, the borders having moved. about 0:08:45
- During the 1960 presidential primaries John F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey bumped into each other on a street corner in Beckley while both were campaigning. about 0:08:57
The reviews read out
4 stars
"Opens 'Mountain Mama, take me home'."about 0:09:52
3 stars
"A resident of 15 years calls the town friendly, praises public schooling and says she feels safe on her street; her only complaint is potholes in the roads, which she says are being fixed."about 0:10:21
3 stars
"Police and ambulance need to be quicker and more reliable; many shootings that could have been prevented, lots of drugs and police who do not seem to care."about 0:11:38
2 stars
"Reviewer moved three years ago and cannot believe the positive reviews; advises visiting before moving."about 0:12:15
1 star
"Nothing to do but bars, small mall with closed stores, drugs, thieves, low pay, rude people, terrible customer service; the reviewer is ashamed to be from there and wants to leave."about 0:12:35
1 star
"A dark cloud hangs over the place, weather terrible, the only decent women are hopped up on meth and crack and tattooed, police rip vehicles apart looking for marijuana and wait across from bars; stay far away."about 0:14:37
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Pemberton, West Virginia4.9 miles
- Layland, West Virginia13 miles
- Lashmeet, West Virginia24 miles
- Victor, West Virginia25 miles
- Princeton, West Virginia28 miles
- Skygusty, West Virginia35 miles
Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.