Book Review for West Virginia's Dark Tourism

Title: West Virginia's Dark Tourism
Author: Tony Urban
Published by Schiffer Publishing, 2016
Amazon Purchase Info

I've actually had this book, half-read, sitting on my shelf for nearly two years.  I don't know why I never got around to finishing and reviewing it, but I figured I'd use the recent worldwide unpleasantness to get caught up on some reading, this book included!

West Virginia's Dark Tourism follows author, Tony Urban, often accompanied by his mother, Sharon, and his dogs around the Mountain State in search of haunted locations, urban legends, and other weird and spooky sites. Recently, the term 'dark tourism' has been defined as tourism involving travel to places historically associated with death and tragedy. More recently, it was suggested that the concept should also include reasons tourists visit that site, since the site's attributes alone may not make a visitor a "dark tourist". The main attraction to dark locations is their historical value rather than their associations with death and suffering.

West Virginia certainly has its fair share of locations that would fit that description!  We were born out of the turmoil of the Civil War. We endured violent mine wars, industrial accidents,  and natural disasters.  We're home to quite a few strange and bizarre paranormal events.  And, unfortunately, we've seen some grisly murders in our state's 150+ year history.

The locations featured in the book cover all these aspects.  Urban visits locations such as the Mothman Museum in Pt. Pleasant, a snake-handling church in Jolo, and the scene of the Quiet Dell Murders in Marion County.  He visits haunted locations such as the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, Harpers Ferry National Park, and Peterkin Retreat.  Over 61 locations are explored, complete with awesome photographs and just enough historical background to make it interesting.

Obviously, I enjoyed this road trip of a book around my home state.  I've been to the majority places found in the book, but it was nice seeing a few I wasn't as familiar with.  It was also nice seeing some of the more popular locations being seen through someone's eyes who is seeing them for the first time.  I love reading about people's impressions of driving up to the Palace of Gold for the first time, or experiencing the historic tour of the WV State Penitentiary at Moundsville.  

Some of these locations may be difficult to find OR access, especially the more remote locations, but the majority are publicly accessible, making this a great guidebook for anyone planning to do some traveling around West Virginia, once travel is back to normal!  I, for one, have gotten some ideas for some day trips to take with my husband once things settle back down.  As an added bonus, many of these locations require little to no human interaction, making social distancing still doable!

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the dark history of West Virginia, or who plan on traveling through the state and is looking for a few unique things to see along the way.  I read this book cover to cover in one sitting, but its format and large, glossy pages filled with color photos make it a great book to just sit out and pick up to thumb through whenever you have a few minutes. So sit back, relax, and travel the wild and weird state of West Virginia without ever leaving home...or plan an epic summer road trip of West Virginia's best dark tourism sites!

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