Cedar Bluff in Tazewell County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

A Virginia Leader

Governor George C. Peery

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 18, 2023

1. A Virginia Leader Marker

Inscription.

A Virginia Leader. Governor George C. Peery. Just a short walk from here is the home where a key Virginia political figure of the 1920s and 1930s was born and raised. , George C. Peery was born in 1873, the son of former Confederate surgeon Dr. James Peery. He spent his childhood working at his father's farm and store, later attending Cedar Bluff High School and Emory and Henry College. After college, Peery returned to the area to serve as the principal of Tazewell High School for two years. He went on to attend the Washington and Lee Law School, where he earned a law degree in one year. Returning to Southwest Virginia, Peery opened a law office in Wise, providing legal services to coal and land companies. He married Nancy Bane Gillespie, daughter of a Tazewell attorney, in 1907. , Peery was elected to the House of Representatives in 1922, serving for six years before returning to Virginia to serve on the State Corporation Commission. He ran for Governor in 1933, easily winning the race and serving from 1934 to 1938. , There were several notable achievements in Peery's term as Governor. Following the repeal of Prohibition, he established the first Alcoholic Beverage Control Board and a network of state-controlled liquor stores. He worked to establish a state unemployment compensation commission, which provided assistance to the unemployed during the recession of 1938. Finally, Peery presided over the opening ceremony of the Virginia State Parks System at Hungry Mother State Park in Marion. , After four years in the Governor's Mansion, Peery returned to his law practice in Tazewell and operated his cattle farm. He served on the Board of Trustees for Washington and Lee University and Hollins College. After an illness, Perry died in 1952 in Richlands. He is buried in Maplewood Cemetery in Tazewell. , Captions (clockwise from top right) , . Photo courtesy of the Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park , . A young George Peery at his home. , . A Sunday gathering at the Cedar Bluff home; Peery stands at center. His sister, Mattie Williams, for whom the Mattie Williams Hospital in Richlands was named, stands behind the group at right. , . Birthplace of Peery at 310 Old Kentucky Turnpike, circa 1940. Photo courtesy of the Library of Virginia

Just a short walk from here is the home where a key Virginia political figure of the 1920s and 1930s was born and raised.

George C. Peery was born in 1873, the son of former Confederate surgeon Dr. James Peery. He spent his childhood working at his father's farm and store, later attending Cedar Bluff High School and Emory and Henry College. After college, Peery returned to the area to serve as the principal of Tazewell High School for two years. He went on to attend the Washington and Lee Law School, where he earned a law degree in one year. Returning to Southwest Virginia, Peery opened a law office in Wise, providing legal services to coal and land companies. He married Nancy Bane Gillespie, daughter of a Tazewell attorney, in 1907.

Peery was elected to the House of Representatives in 1922, serving for six years before returning to Virginia to serve on the State Corporation Commission. He ran for Governor in 1933, easily winning the race and serving from 1934 to 1938.

There were several notable achievements in Peery's term as Governor. Following the repeal of Prohibition, he established the first Alcoholic Beverage

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Control Board and a network of state-controlled liquor stores. He worked to establish a state unemployment compensation commission, which provided assistance to the unemployed during the recession of 1938. Finally, Peery presided over the opening ceremony of the Virginia State Parks System at Hungry Mother State Park in Marion.

After four years in the Governor's Mansion, Peery returned to his law practice in Tazewell and operated his cattle farm. He served on the Board of Trustees for Washington and Lee University and Hollins College. After an illness, Perry died in 1952 in Richlands. He is buried in Maplewood Cemetery in Tazewell.

Captions (clockwise from top right)
• Photo courtesy of the Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park
• A young George Peery at his home.
• A Sunday gathering at the Cedar Bluff home; Peery stands at center. His sister, Mattie Williams, for whom the Mattie Williams Hospital in Richlands was named, stands behind the group at right.
• Birthplace of Peery at 310 Old Kentucky Turnpike, circa 1940. Photo courtesy of the Library of Virginia

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 18, 2023

2. A Virginia Leader Marker

topic list: Government & Politics. A significant historical year for this entry is 1873.

Location. 37° 5.297′ N, 81° 45.827′ W. Marker is in Cedar Bluff, Virginia, in Tazewell County. It is at the intersection of Cedar Valley Drive (Business U.S. 460) and Central Avenue, on the right when traveling west on Cedar Valley Drive. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1100 Cedar Valley Dr, Cedar Bluff VA 24609, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southwest Virginia.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Civil War Years (within shouting distance of this marker);

George Campbell Peery (1873-1952) image. Click for full size.

National Photo Company via Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division (Public Domain), 1923

3. George Campbell Peery (1873-1952)

A Democrat, he served as Virginia's 52nd governor from 1934 to 1938.

A Warm Heritage (within shouting distance of this marker); Mill Industries (within shouting distance of this marker); Railroad & Resort (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Cedar Bluff (approx. ¼ mile away); Dixie Hotel Building (approx. 1.8 miles away); T. Shea Cook Family Home (approx. 1.9 miles away); Becky's Jewel Box (approx. 1.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cedar Bluff.

Also see . . . George Campbell Peery (1873-1952). A Democratic ally of Harry F. Byrd Sr., he valued economic thrift and small government, but was not afraid to support more progressive policies when they were politically and economically advantageous. (Ronald L. Heinemann, Encyclopedia Virginia, posted Dec. 7, 2020) (Submitted on July 16, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

George C. Peery House image. Click for full size.

Brian Stansberry via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0), May 12, 2018

4. George C. Peery House

Credits. This page was last revised on July 16, 2023. It was originally submitted on July 16, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 756 times since then and 122 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on July 16, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.