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City of Central Founder Russell Starns Looks Back on Battle for Incorporation

Starting a new city is one of the most difficult things anyone can undertake in the State of Louisiana, but a hardy band of Central residents led by Central businessman Russell Starns did just that in 2004-2005. Starns, a 1975 graduate of Central High School where he was a star football player, became successful in […]

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12 Elected Officials Who Helped Shape Central

 On the 14th anniversary of the founding of the City of Central, the cover of the Central City News honors 12 elected officials — living and dead — who have made an enormous contribution of the City of Central as we know it today. There are others who have also done a great deal to […]

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10 More Things You Should Know About Central, Especially if You Live Here!

Do you live, go to school, or work in Central?  Do you have family here? Are you thinking of starting a business in Central?  Or do you just want to understand more about the City of Central and its 28,000 people? Last year, the Central City News’ 13th City of Central Anniversary Edition, published, “50 […]

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Central’s First Class of 1st Graders from 2007 Will Graduate May 21

The Central Community School System officially came into being on July 1, 2007. The following month, 10 classes of 1st graders enrolled at Bellingrath Hills Elementary School. (See pages 23-25 for pictures of those 1st graders.) On Tuesday, many of those same students will walk across the stage at the University Center at SLU in […]

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Message to Graduates from Across Time

In May 1913, Pearl Elizabeth Felps walked to the podium as the valedictorian of the first graduating of the new Central High School, located at the corner of Canal (now Hooper) and Sullivan roads. A copy of her speech was discovered in 2009 and given to the Central City News. It is a timeless message […]

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Together Baton Rouge, Saul Alinsky, and Snake Oil

EDITOR’S NOTE: In January, far-left Together Baton Rouge launched an attack against ExxonMobil resulting in the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board defeating 5-4 a routine Industrial Tax Exemption (ITEP) for Exxon’s Baton Rouge refinery. The school board action and some of the harsh attacks against Exxon raised questions as to whether Baton Rouge was […]

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President George Bush As I Knew Him

The news that President Bush died put a lump in my throat as I began to remember all the many kindnesses he bestowed on my wife Diane and me and our family. He was a true and faithful friend! One of my favorite times was our trip with President Bush to Honduras in 1998 to […]

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50 Things You Should Know About Central, Especially if You Live Here!

Do you live, go to school, or work in Central? Do you have family here? Are you thinking of starting a business in Central? Or do you just want to understand more about the City of Central and its 28,000 people? Then here are 50 things you should know: ­—1— When did Europeans first explore […]

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Central — Specifically Meaning the Corner of Hooper and Sullivan — Got Its Name Because It Was ‘Central’ to One-Room Schools in Area

In 1857, there were many close knit communities in the area now known as Central. Huge farms and public lands are shown on a map of that period. Some of the prominent names were Evan Vaughn, Nathan Baker, William Sullivan, Peter Delorroche, Joseph Carter, Rachael Dally, William Edwards, and others. Waterways had been named as […]

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Danny & Cheryl Brown: A Love Story

The passing of Danny Brown last month could be reported as a loss to Baton Rouge of a master photojournalist who covered such historic events as the Apollo moon landings and the career of LSU All-America Pistol Pete Maravich. Or the focus might be on the intimate access he had at the Governor’s Mansion during […]

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