Cornerstones
Description
Founded by the Tulane City Center, Cornerstones began as a movement to document the overlooked and threatened landmarks of New Orleans. This book, a collaboration with the Neighborhood Story Project, is a showcase of the intersections of places and people that make New Orleans great. This is a New Orleans history through place—barrooms as comfortable as living rooms, an empty lot that holds more life than many houses, a barbershop that doubles as an artist studio, and a museum that grew out of one man’s back shed. Through interviews, photographs, site maps, and architectural drawings, Cornerstones introduces us to seven neighborhood places and their owners. Sit in on a conversation at the Maple Leaf Bar, where regulars gather for Sunday readings and crawfish boils, or learn what makes Joytown Square Barbershop & Beauty Salon a social hub of the Seventh Ward. A testament to the importance of neighborhood spaces, Cornerstones is a reminder of the places that hold our history.
Author Bio
Rachel Breunlin is co-director of the Neighborhood Story Project. She is currently the ethnographer-in-residence in the Anthropology Department at the University of New Orleans where she teaches courses on public culture and collaborative ethnography.
Abram Himelstein earned his MFA from the University of New Orleans in 2005. In his work at the Neighborhood Story Project, Abram teaches writing, fundraising, and dealing with the printing and distribution of books.
Bethany Rogers received a master’s degree in urban and regional planning with an emphasis in historic preservation and living heritage conservation from the University of New Orleans in 2003. Until recently, she taught at Tulane University‘s School of Architecture where she collaborated with the university as director of the Cornerstones Project. She is currently the Executive Director for the Danville Main Street Program in Danville, KY.
