The Home of Kadizzle

Above is a picture of Wheeling, West Virginia.  Kadizzle was born there many, many, years ago.  Wheeling is about the size of Bismarck and in 1894 was the richest city in the United States. It was the original jumping off point to the west.  If you look closely you can see the Suspension Bridge.  That bridge at one time was the longest suspension bridge in the United States.  Kadizzle's Grandfather was mayor at one time, and supposedly he jumped from the bridge into the river as a young man.  It would be a daring feat.  The bridge in the foreground has my Grandfather's name on it. That is the Fort Henry Bridge.  If you ever drive east on I-70 you will cross into West Virginia at the Ohio River and immediately go through the twin tunnels.  Kadizzle's neighborhood was just on the exist side of the tunnels.  If you look down river you will see a blue stripe coming down off the hill.  This is the conveyor for the underground coal mine where Kadizzle worked in the summer while he went to college.  Once this was an area of thriving industry.  There were steel mills, glass factories,  foundries, and just about every type of manufacturing.  Those days are over.  The economy of Wheeling has slipped into some sort of haze.  The only thing keeping Wheeling afloat is the natural gas boom.  Just like North Dakota drilling is going nuts.  The coal industry is dead or dying.