‘Forest Hill’ Author to speak at LSU Eunice Friday

Cheré Dastugue Coen will be speaking on her latest book, “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History” (The History Press), at noon Friday at the Arnold LeDoux Library on the LSU-Eunice campus in Eunice.
Members of the local community garden, Jardin des Amis, will be bringing plants, flowers and seeds for swapping and Doug Young Nursery of Forest Hill has donated two $50 gift certificates as door prizes.
The book details the history of Forest Hill, a town of about 800 people near Alexandria that’s also home to 220-plus plant nurseries. Forest Hill has long been a favorite among gardeners and landscapers and thousands flock to the town’s annual Louisiana Nursery Festival in March.
Forest Hill was also the site of Solomon Northup’s first home in Louisiana, the main character and narrator of “12 Years A Slave.” The massive timber industry utilized the ancient forests surrounding the town and only a few miles away was Camp Claiborne, home to the largest peacetime war maneuvers in U.S. history and training ground for half a million soldiers during World War II.
Coen is an award-winning, international freelance writer living in Lafayette and author of several books including “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country.”