The Optimistâs Daughter begins in New Orleans, Louisiana. The beginning of the novel takes place in a hospital in the bustling city during Marti Gras. After the Judge passes, the majority of the novel is set in Laurelâs childhood home, in her fatherâs hometown of Mount Salus, Mississippi.
The two largest hospitals in Huntington are St. Mary's Medical Center and Cabell Huntington Hospital. St. Mary's and Cabell-Huntington are jointly designated as the only trauma center in the region.
The East Huntington Bridge (officially the Frank Gatski Memorial Bridge, also called the East End Bridge or the 31st Street Bridge) is a 900-foot (270 m) cable-stayed bridge crossing the Ohio River at Huntington, West Virginia. It carries WV 106 on the West Virginia approach and OH 775 on the Ohio approach.