Born in Cedar Bluff, Virginia on October 28, 1873, George Campbell Peery was a graduate of Cedar Bluff High School and served three terms in the United States Congress before being elected governor of Virginia in 1934. George C. Peery was the son of former Confederate surgeon, Dr. James Peery. Peery’s political life began in 1920 as delegate to the Democratic National Convention and chair of the Ninth District Democratic Committee. At the time, the district had been firmly under Republican control for decades, but Peery organized a strong opposition, winning election to the House of Representatives in 1922. He served for six years.

Following his time in Congress, Peery returned 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. In the 1930s, the nation was in the grip of the Great Depression, but Virginia was in an economic recovery during Governor Peery’s term. Peery called for “thrift” and “economy” in the state government; when state revenues suddenly declined, Peery called for a 5% cut in spending to maintain Virginia’s balanced budget. He even opposed state funds for direct unemployment relief, instead using state highway funds to hire unemployed workers. In public education, Peery pushed for higher taxes to overcome budget shortfalls that had led many schools to end the school year early.

He also worked to establish a state unemployment compensation commission, which provided assistance to the unemployed during the recession of 1938. There were several other notable achievements in Peery’s term as governor. Following the repeal of Prohibition, he established the first Alcoholic Beverage Control Board and state-controlled liquor stores. He changed the way local justices of the peace were paid from a “fee-for-service” model (with higher pay for successful convictions) to a system with salaried, court-appointed trial justices. Finally, Peery presided over the opening ceremony of the Virginia State Parks System at Hungry Mother State Park in Marion.

Peery served on the Board of Trustees for Washington and Lee University and Hollins College. After an illness, Perry died in 1952 at the age of 78. He is buried in Maplewood Cemetery in Tazewell.