Rockingham County, Virginia
Background History (from the Chrisman House Website)
GEORGE CHRISMAN HOUSE, in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, is located northwest of Route 42 and Edom, on Shaver
Mill Road (Route 780). Sometime between 1761 and 1787, George Chrisman (b. 1745, d. 1816) built this two-story
limestone house where he lived with his wife Hannah McDowell Chrisman (b. 1744, d. 1817) and their seven
children. In 1781, during the Revolutionary War, George Chrisman was sworn in as a captain in the
Rockingham County militia.
In a 1957 letter to the former owners, Shenandoah Valley historian and author John W. Wayland wrote that the house
"is probably one of the oldest in Rockingham County." George Chrisman's parents were among the many pioneer families
who traveled from Pennsylvania to Virginia by wagon train in 1731/32 under the leadership of Jost Hite (b. 1685, d. 1761).
George's father, Jacob Chrisman (b. 1706, d. 1778), was a native of Germany who had married Jost Hite’s daughter Magdalena
(b. 1713, d. 1771) a few years earlier in Pennsylvania. Their first child, Jacob Jr., was born in 1730, so the Chrismans made
the difficult journey to Virginia with a small child in tow.
Captain Chrisman's grandfather was personally responsible for encouraging and guiding several groups of primarily German
families, including his own sons, daughters and their families, to the land west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. In The German
Element of The Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, John W. Wayland states that "the county deed books of Orange, Frederick, and
Augusta contain almost innumerable records of land sales by Jost Hite." As he was in his own lifetime, Jost Hite is recognized
today as one of the earliest settlers of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. The Shaver family owned this stone house for more
than 100 years and the ruins of Shaver Mill, an early 19th century gristmill, can still be seen on the property. Although known
locally for years as "The Shaver Place," when the house was placed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National
Register of Historic Places in 2006, it was officially named in honor of the original owner.
Currently, unusual activity reported from the owners is a series of three events where something very loud has crashed
(the sound of glass shattering) within the house only to discover not one thing out of place. The events are described as
very loud and give the thought that something very delicate has fallen and broken creating quite a mess to clean up.
Again, there are no signs of anything that has fallen or broken within the house. There has been a space of a few years
in between incidents. Black Raven Paranormal was very excited and eager to investigate this beautiful,
historic home. We want to thank Susan and Dan Pinnell for their very kind hospitality!
Investigation 01/07/2012 (9pm - 1am Investigators -- #4) -- Evidence -- (1) Class C evp (possible)
Data recorded on investigation -- Audio, Video, Photographs, EMF, Temperature, Personal Experiences
Visit the George Chrisman House Website
George Chrisman House Photo Album
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