509. Ruth Laney

509. We talk to Ruth Laney about her biography of Ernest Gaines: Cherie Quarters: The Place and the People That Inspired Ernest J. Gaines.  "Cherie Quarters combines personal interviews, biography, and social history to tell the story of a plantation quarter and its most famous resident, renowned Louisiana writer and Pulitzer Prize nominee Ernest J. Gaines. In clear and vivid prose, this original and vital book illuminates the birthplace of a preeminent Black author and the lives of the people who inspired his work. Before he became an award-winning writer, Gaines was the son of sharecroppers in Cherie Quarters, a small Black community in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana. Drawing on decades of interviews and archival research, Ruth Laney explores the lives and histories of the families, both kin and not, who lived in a place where 'everybody was everybody’s child.' Built as slave cabins for the nearby River Lake Plantation in the 1840s, the houses of Cherie Quarters were cold in winter, hot in summer, filled with mosquitoes, and overflowing with people. Even so, the residents made these houses into homes. Laney describes aspects of their daily lives — work, food, entertainment, religion, and education—then expands her focus to the white families who built River Lake Plantation, enslaved its people, and later directed the lives of its Black sharecroppers" (LSU Pr.).

1. This week in Louisiana history. February 17, 1805. New Orleans is incorporated as a city
2. This week in New Orleans history. On February 17, 1944 the Liberty ship Rufus E. Foster was launched at Delta Shipbuilding Company.
   
3. This week in Louisiana.
   Visit St. Louis Cemetery No. 2
   Historic New Orleans Tours
   Backatown Coffee Parlour
   301 Basin St.
   Suite 1
   New Orleans, LA 70112
   Free people of color have a storied history in New Orleans. After being freed, many purchased vaults and tombs in St. Louis Cemetery No. 2. Their tombs each tell both a troubling and fascinating story. Hear the tales of black poets, writers, swordsman, and mathematicians on this unique tour. These tours are presented by Historic New Orleans Tours and start at Backatown Coffee Parlour. They’ll take you through Tremé and to historic spots such as Congo Square and Armstrong Park.
   The tour is 2.5 hours in length at 1:30 p.m. every day.
   
4. Postcards from Louisiana. Tip Jar Junkies.

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