2011 Literary Landmarks

  • Beauregard-Keyes House, New Orleans, La. Author Frances Parkinson Keyes made the house at 1113 Chartres St. her winter residence from 1945 until her death in 1970 at the age of 85. Of her 51 books, The Chess Players and Madame Castel's Lodger are set at the house and tell of its construction and early habitation. It was at the house that she wrote Dinner at Antoine's, her best known work. Dedicated June 27, 2011. Partner: Friends of the New Orleans Public Library.
     
  • Tahlequah Public Library, Talequah, Okla. Woodrow Wilson Rawls (1913-1984) was the author of two children’s books: Where the Red Fern Grows and Summer of the Monkeys. Rawls’ early childhood was spent on his mother’s Cherokee allotment 13 miles northeast of Tahlequah, along the Illinois River in Cherokee County. Rawls visited the Carnegie Library in Tahlequah when he was young. He wrote, “The day I discovered libraries was one of the biggest days of my life. Practically all of my spare time was spent there. I read everything I could get my hands on pertaining to creative writing. I didn’t just read those books, I practically memorized them.” Dedicated April 30, 2011. Partners: Friends of Libraries in Oklahoma, Tahlequah Friends of the Library, and the Cherokee Heritage Center of Tahlequah.
     
  • Mansfield Public Library, Mansfield, Texas. John Howard Griffin lived on a farm in Mansfield during the time he conducted the social experiment chronicled in his book author of Black Like Me. He darkened his skin in the fall of 1959 and lived as a black man for seven weeks while traveling through Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama. Black Like Me has been translated into 14 languages and has sold more than 10 million copies. Dedicated Feb. 27, 2011. Partners: Friends of the Mansfield Public Library.