History of Reserve Told Through Photographs

Sept. 8, 2011 - PRLog -- The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s popular Images of America series is Reserve from local authors Gerald J. Keller, PhD, and E. Darroch Watson. The book boasts more than 200 vintage images and memories of days gone by.

Once a thriving center of sugar production on the east bank of the Mississippi River, Reserve has matured into one of America’s quintessential small towns. Settled by members of Louisiana’s expanding German Coast, Reserve has grown from an agrarian economy to one of global industry, trade, and resource development.

Born under the name Bonnet Carre and later raised as St. Peter’s, after the church at the center of its life, the term Reserve was adopted from the name of the plantation that had essentially started it all. Nestled between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Reserve has offered its hospitality to weary travelers and visitors alike for 150 years.

An integral part in the history of St. John the Baptist Parish, Reserve has retained its charm and warmth through a long-standing tradition of faith and family, where its sons and daughters may venture out onto the world stage but always call Reserve home. Strolling through Reserve today, one can enjoy a community steeped in German, French, and African roots.

Highlights of Reserve:
•   All of the profits from the book will be donated to the Reserve 150 Sesquicentennial Committee, to continue the historical preservation of the Reserve community.
•   The majority of the images used in the book have been donated from private collections of local residents, many which have never before been published.
•   The book represents the first time the two main cultural communities of Reserve have worked together to bring about such a project.

Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or
(888)-313-2665.

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With more than 7,500 local history titles published to date, Arcadia Publishing is the leading publisher of local and regional history in the United States. Widely recognized sepia books feature hundreds of vintage historical images.