Central City News

President Donald Trump and our entire nation are poised to celebrate the 250th anniversary of this great country. A vital part of our history and the preservation of our freedom under the United States Constitution have been our newspapers. Here in East Baton Rouge Parish, newspapers have informed us and protected our liberties since at […]

The West Florida Museum is a delight for fans of railroads and model railroading. It’s a beautiful drive from Baton Rouge to Jackson, where an authentic small town Florida Parishes lifestyle still prevails. The museum includes a train station, old-time trains, outdoor model trains, and large indoor model train layouts.  If you want to see […]

By Woody Jenkins, editor Central City News The seven Newsome boys have lived all over the country. Four of the brothers followed their dad and joined the Marines. The fifth boy joined the Army.  The last two boys wanted to follow their older brothers into the military. Nearly 20 years ago, then-Marine Corps Capt. Saul […]

By Woody Jenkins, editor Central City News My first experience in business was — ironically — in newspapers!  It was 1951, and I was four!   We lived on Lobelia Street by Esso Standard Oil in North Baton Rouge.  We were just around the corner from Mr. Dunlap’s Drugstore on Scenic Highway. I noticed my […]

Central businessman Gil Matherne loves a good building project, and he’s been working hard to complete his latest undertaking, a chapel honoring his wife Michelle, or Meia as she is affectionately called by family, for their 50th wedding anniversary. Everything should be complete by 2 p.m. this Saturday, February 28 when Father Jason Palermo of […]

From vacations to the beach, mission trips to places like Malaysia, football and cheerleader camps, and family gardens, the people of Central have been using their free time this summer to enjoy life in our beautiful city. On Page 17-18, we feature the canning of Jeannie Spell and all that goes into it.  She and […]

Woody Jenkins Editor, Central City News I was born in Baton Rouge and have lived here almost my entire life, but five formative years were spent in Rougon, a rural area of Pointe Coupee Parish. I was an only child, and we lived on a farm. No other children lived nearby. From 1951-1956 when I […]

May 2005 was an important time in the history of Central. On April 19, the Central City News began publication, and two days later the voters of Central voted to incorporate Central as Louisiana’s newest city.  May 2005 was a time of great excitement but also apprehension about the future. All eyes in the capital […]

By Woody Jenkins, Editor, Central City News – Baton Rouge Bright and early on Saturday morning, Dec. 2, 2023, Katherine Diamond was hard at work on the riverfront in downtown Baton Rouge, picking up trash. She had on her yellow vest, as did the others who were there for a variety of wrongs, such as […]

In 2017, Kathryn Mancuso’s friend asked her to paint a party cup for her and it unlocked a desire to paint and create again that she hadn’t felt since she was a little girl. Ever since, she hasn’t been able to put the paint brushes down! She has built her small business up to where […]