Town file
Hudson, Ohio
Hudson, Ohio (Summit County, Ohio) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 591, "Best Friends Murder" (24 April 2025).
- Town
- Hudson
- County
- Summit County
- State
- Ohio
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 591
- Approximate location
- 41.239, -81.442
Episode 591 / 24 April 2025 / 179 min / full
Best Friends Murder
"We are going to Ohio this week; northeastern Ohio, about 20 minutes outside Akron; this is in Summit County, area code 330 and 234." about 0:05:24
The case: Murder of Roger 'Butch' Pratt (June 17, 1988). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2025
- Population
- 23,000 and one
- Median age
- about 43 and a half
- Median household income
- $143,143
- Median home value
- $431,500
- Two-bedroom rent
- $1,400 a month
- Cost of living
- 80
- Religious
- about 47%
- Property crime
- ▼ about one quarter
- Violent crime
- ▼ about one third
History, in brief
- Hudson is named for its founder David Hudson, who came from Goshen, Connecticut in 1799. about 0:06:09
- The village of Hudson was incorporated in 1837 and David Hudson built the first log house in Summit County. about 0:06:23
- It was home to the Western Reserve College and Preparatory School, founded in 1826 by David Hudson and others, and called the Yale of the West. about 0:06:49
- The college moved to Cleveland in 1882 and later, as Western Reserve University, merged with the Case Institute of Technology to form Case Western Reserve University. about 0:07:11
- A fire on the west side of Main Street in 1892 destroyed the buildings between Park Lane and Clinton Street, including Lockhart's Saloon and the Mansion hotel. about 0:07:28
- A Pennsylvania coal mine owner named James Ellsworth helped rebuild Main Street after another fire in 1903 and refinanced the Western Reserve Academy. about 0:07:55
- The Western Reserve Academy was closed from 1903 to 1916 because there was no money to operate it. about 0:08:11
The reviews read out
5 stars
"A tight-knit, safe community with little to no crime, great schools, a big library and a cute new shopping district; family friendly, though the reviewer would like more involvement with the high school youth."about 0:08:38
5 stars
"A family that moved from the Chicago area three years ago finds Hudson quaint, clean and quiet, with a relaxed and friendly culture, and recommends it."about 0:10:03
3 stars
"There is not a lot of crime in the area at all; crime is not a problem."about 0:10:25
2 stars
"The area is known for its downtown but there is barely anything to do there apart from summer weekend events, restaurants and overpriced shopping."about 0:10:33
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio7.0 miles
- Coventry Township, Ohio17 miles
- Montville Township, Ohio23 miles
- North Canton, Ohio25 miles
- Howland Township, Ohio36 miles
- Beach City, Ohio41 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.