Book excerpt: Evade the Tourist Herds and Enter Into An Insider’s Charleston and Huntington. Renowned and unknown history, hidden delights and fascinating stories pervade the history of southern West Virginia and the current capital city of Charleston. This kaleidoscope of discovery, architecture, personalities, egos, scandals, conflict, are surrounded by sheer natural beauty creating a vivid tapestry defining over nearly two centuries. This guide transports you geographically and photographically to the precise famous and infamous locations where history occurred. The scenes may sometimes appear ordinary, weird, but often illuminate the physical background and descriptions behind events. Many of the narratives defy believability, yet they are true. This Twisted Tour Guide is your alternative to conventional travel. It accommodates the restless visitor, tourist and resident seeking a unique and different perspective to traditional tourism. Charleston and Huntington remain two of the most beguiling, historic and underexposed cities within the United States. Welcome to one on the most useful, eclectic and enlightening introductions. CHARLESTON REGION: Cedar Grove Mansion, Cynthia Miller, Tammy Jean Daniel, Jay Farley, Mazie Mae Palmer, Juliet Staunton Clark, Lynn Priestley, Bob Snow, James Means, Murders, Fort Lee, Shawn Lester’s Killing Spree, Battle of Charleston, Capitol Theatre, Craik-Patton House, Holly Grove Mansion, Littlepage Stone Mansion, MacFarland-Hubbard House, Ruffner/Riflemen’s Memorial Park, J. Q. Dickinson Salt Works, Diamond Department Store, Ferguson Hotel Block, Gordon-Van Tine Assembled Home, Greenbrier Resort, George S. Patton Sr., Battle of White Sulphur Springs, State Capitol Building Complex, Staunton-Zimmerman House, Triangle District, Woodrums-Stevens House, Police Forensic Director Abuser Fred Zain, General Lewis Inn, Governor Arch Moore, Jr., Hatfield-McCoy Family Feud, Katherine Johnson, Kent Carper’s Fall From Esteem, State Police Academy Camera Scandal, Supreme Court of Appeals Impeachment, Logan County Voter Abuse, Lewisburg Confederate Graveyard, Singer Hank Williams’ Death, John Stuart, New River Gorge Bridge, Battle of Lewisburg, Fort Savannah, Greenbrier Ghost, Sodder Family Fire Mystery, Zero Mile Stone, Booker T. Washington, Lewisburg Carnegie Hall, Greenbrier College For Women, Kanawha County Public Library and Abraham Lincoln Memorial. HUNTINGTON REGION: Ensign-Seelinger House, Samantha Burns Abduction Death, Leah Hickman, and Murder, Keith-Albee Performing Art Center, Campbell-Hicks House, Enslow Mansion Site, 2005 Prom Night Murders, Kerr Glass Company Closing, Ohio River Flood Wall Barriers, Owens-Illinois Closure, Ritter Park Hanging, Woodmere Cemetery, Mother Blood, Patterson Murder-Suicide, Battle of Matewan, Hotel Frederick, DAR Buford Chapter Log Cabin House, Diamond Teeth Mary McClain, Coin Harvey House, Frostop Root Beer, Hotel Prichard, Memorial Arch, Old Main Marshall University, Tipton Theatre, Alex Cox Mansion Ruin, B’Nai Sholom Congregation, Buffington-McGinnis Home, Jim’s Steak and Spaghetti House, Titanic Survivor Eloise Hughes Smith, Billy Crystal’s Marshall University Year, East Drive-In Theatre, Basketball Legend Hal Greer, Joshua Martin Death, Madie Carroll House, St. Mary’s Medical Center, Barboursville’s Pink Elephant, White Pantry restaurant, Cabell County Jail Break, Carnegie Public Library, Fifth Baptist Church, Huntington Railroad Museum, Second Presbyterian Church fire, Trinity Episcopal Church, First Congregational United Church of Christ, and Charles Manson hometown.