About.com now has a variety of websites focused specifically on particular cities. The sites provide topically organized links on the city they're focus on. About.com now has eight such sites on Appalachian cities, and they are worth checking out...
Kevin & Lorraine Hesson manage the Roanoke site for About.com. Both are Internet professionals in the Roanoke area. Kevin is an independent consultant to several Internet retail companies. Lorraine is an information specialist working in online document management as related to quality control.
All of the About.com sites provide both organized topical link pages and feature articles by the "guide" who manages the site. An example from the Roanoke is Kevin & Lorraine's article on Smith Mountain Lake:
Whether you are looking for a relaxing fishing trip, planning to tour the Roanoke Valley, or just want to enjoy spending time at a scenic mountain lake, these resources will help you prepare for your visit. With 20,000 acres and over 500 miles of shoreline to enjoy, Smith Mountain Lake really does have something for everyone!
Organized links at the Roanoke site cover a wide range of topics, including things like:
- Bed and Breakfast establishments in the area
- Roanoke Restaurants
- The Arts and Entertainment scene in the city.
In my mind, two cities compete for the title of "Capital of Appalachia": Knoxville, Tn., and Charleston, WV. The city with the strongest claim is probably Charleston, and Scott Harris manages the Charleston site for About.com. According to the site's guide bio, Harris is living in semi-retirement, in "simple but pleasant obscurity, contemplating his "second career" amid the beautiful forested mountains of West Virginia."
Among other things, Harris has a good introduction to the city of Charleston at his site:
Charleston lies in the heart of the forested mountains of West Virginia, nestled along the valleys at the confluence of the Kanawha and Elk rivers. The Kanawha River flows into the Ohio River, and you could take your boat from here down to New Orleans.
You can read the rest of the article at his site, which includes a photo album index of Charleston.
The site for Knoxville, the other city which could one day wind up as the capital of an independent Appalachia, is edited by Melany Noltenius, who describes herself as "nearly a Knoxville native."
