David W. Erdman was born on the Fourth of July, 1949, on the Marine base at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, where his father, a Navy surgeon, and his mother, a Red Cross worker, were stationed after World War II. Reared in and around historic New Bern, North Carolina, Erdman learned at an early age the importance of historic preservation. He observed close hand the monumental restoration of Tryon Palace in the 1950s. At the same time, he was witness to the destruction of irreplaceable historic buildings, including New Bern's roundhouse, Kafer Hospital, Governor Tryon Hotel, and the Blades Mansion. He developed a passion for historic preservation, which is displayed throughout this book. He attended Duke University as an Angier B. Duke Scholar. He was Duke's first graduate with a major in biomedical engineering. Passing up an acceptance to medical school, he earned a law degree at Georgetown University Law Center. While at Georgetown, he worked on the U.S. Senate Watergate Committee and lived on historic Capitol Hill. While in law school, Erdman traveled extensively across the United States. Then he traveled to every corner of North Carolina during stints working at the North Carolina State Board of Higher Education, the North Carolina Department of Labor, the office of the North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction, and as advance man for Jim Hunt's first campaign for governor. During his travels, he sought out the historic sections of every city and crossroads. In Charlotte since 1976, Erdman has become one of the city's best-known lawyers and historians. Since moving to the city, he has championed historic preservation as a private citizen, as an at-large member of the Charlotte City Council, and as a six-year member of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission. Erdman is married to Lynn Erdman. They have two grown daughters, Natalie Moore and Emily Manney. He has authored many articles about history and historic preservation. His speeches about the history of Charlotte number in the hundreds. Erdman has collected thousands of digital images of Old Charlotte. This is his first book.