Leigh Jones Handal has been an avid student of Low Country history since she was a Brownie Scout. Her new book, Lost Charleston chronicles the markets, mansions, hotels, restaurants, church towers and cherished businesses that time, progress, and fashion have swept aside. The miracle of Charleston is that despite the very worst that man and nature has thrown at it –from earthquakes to hurricanes, great fires to Civil War bombardment – so much of the city has been preserved. Leigh has documented Charleston’s greatest architectural and cultural losses from 1861 through 2018. 

Leigh is co-editor of the City of Charleston's official Tour Guide Training Manual and organized Historic Charleston Foundation's annual spring house-and-garden tours for 13 years, as well as the Preservation Society of Charleston's Fall home tours. A graduate of the College of Charleston, Leigh has been a licensed tour guide for more than 20 years. She appears regularly to talk about local history on Charleston's ABC affiliate, WCIV's Lowcountry Live. She loves sharing the magic of the Carolina Lowcountry through her own tour guide company, Charleston Raconteurs (www.charlestonraconteurs.com). Lost Charleston is available for purchase through her above website.