Maplewood

Written in Singleton's engaging and narrative-driven style this book outlines the fascinating story of a town that is totally unique in US history. The town was a modern marvel born in the throes of a World War. Maplewood was built to house employees of the Cities Service Oil Company refinery in southwest Louisiana. Built as a national defense plant, it produced high octane gasoline for the World War II effort. This book would not have been possible without Mary Ann Mitchell Redd and her treasure trove of historic photographs and many clippings saved in a scrap book made by her mother. Book editor, John Singleton was raised in Maplewood and attended Maplewood school through ninth grade. He is a graduate of Sulphur High School (class of 1961) and received a BS in Engineering from McNeese State University (Lake Charles, LA) in 1972. During a career that spanned many years, he worked as a consulting engineer. John has been blessed with a wife of 54 years, two very talented offspring (one an RN, the other a DVM), and four grandchildren.