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During the prosperous 1990s many American cities were embellished with clusters of large houses that have been described in terms ranging from “MacMansion” or “starter castle” to “house on steroids.” Quarry Ridge, developed on wooded bluffs high above Kanawha City and the state capitol across the river, contains Charleston's prime examples of the genre. Although the approach to the development is anything but grand, the houses themselves are, in a word, phenomenal. Most are built on ridges, though others are more comfortably set into glades. Various styles are present, as are a