Author Bio: Maureen Esnard Gilmer loves a mystery. The day she decided to find out about the old missionary in a family photo began a twenty year treasure hunt for the reasons why he ended up in the Belgian Congo a hundred years ago. Already an established author of 18 books and a nationally syndicated columnist, her desire to find the answers required she trace all the Esnards of New Orleans back to the free people of color community unique to that ancient American city. "It's as though they … [Read more...] about Interview with Author – Maureen Esnard Gilmer
Jumping the Fence: A Legacy of Race in 150 Years of Family Secrets by Maureen Esnard Gilmer
Jumping The Fence is an extraordinary true story of a mixed race New Orleans family, rooted in the secretive gens de coleur libres, the free people of color of the French Quartery. As the story unfolds the reader becomes aware of the free colored class before the Civil War and how they took part in the politics of Reconstruction, then suffered under the gradual stranglehold of Jim Crow legislation. While much is written about this period, this is the first book to explore through the lives of … [Read more...] about Jumping the Fence: A Legacy of Race in 150 Years of Family Secrets by Maureen Esnard Gilmer
