Town file
Pearisburg, Virginia
Pearisburg, Virginia (Giles County, Virginia) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 555, "Murder On The Trail" (19 December 2024). On 19 May 1981, two social workers from Ellsworth, Maine, bedded down for the night at the Wapiti 2 shelter on the Appalachian Trail above Pearisburg, Virginia.
- Town
- Pearisburg
- County
- Giles County
- State
- Virginia
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 555
- Approximate location
- 37.329, -80.727
Episode 555 / 19 December 2024 / 163 min / full
Murder On The Trail
"James says they are going to Parisburg, Virginia, which is pear like the fruit, in north central Virginia, in Giles County." about 0:04:15
The case: Murder of Robert Mountford Jr. and Laura Susan Ramsey (May 1981); Shooting of Sean Farmer and Scott Johnston (May 2008). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2024
- Population
- 2,878
- Median age
- 45
- Median household income
- almost $66,000
- Median home value
- $188,400
- Cost of living
- 80 out of 100
- Religious
- fifty fifty
- Property crime
- ▲ higher than the national average
- Violent crime
- ▼ about half the national average
- Murders on the Appalachian Trail since 1974
- nine
History, in brief
- Founded in 1808 when Giles County was established. about 0:04:55
- Named after George Pearis, a local landowner who donated a 50-acre tract for a town to grow around the county courthouse. about 0:05:00
- Pearis commanded a company of Virginia cavalrymen under Joseph Cloyd during the War of Independence and was wounded in the shoulder. about 0:05:34
- On October 14th, 1780, his men defeated the Tories at Shallow Fork on the Yadkin River. about 0:05:43
- He moved to Giles County, bought property, married and operated a ferry, the first store in town and a tavern. about 0:06:00
- He was appointed the first justice of the peace of the county. about 0:06:24
- He ran a ferry on the New River at a settlement called Bluff City, which was later absorbed into Pearisburg. about 0:06:31
- He died in 1810 and is buried in his own cemetery, the Pearis cemetery. about 0:06:39
The reviews read out
4 stars
"Great little town; the reviewer was born and raised there and would love to go back, and is looking for a retirement place but is not sure what is available."about 0:07:14
"The bathroom had a quarter inch of sconge on it."about 0:08:09
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Radford, Virginia17 miles
- Princeton, West Virginia20 miles
- Lashmeet, West Virginia27 miles
- Pemberton, West Virginia38 miles
- Beckley, West Virginia39 miles
- Layland, West Virginia41 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.