Jessi Bennett

I would not have missed it for anything…this is a swell place…Tela Viv [sic] Palestine right on the Mederterrian [sic] Sea and a beautiful place is it…I went to the old city Jerusalem, Damascus Gate, Jaffa Gate, Solomons [Quarries]…Herod’s Gate St. Stephen’s Gate, Kidron Valley, Valley of Jehoshaphat, Garden of Gethsemane, Church of Nations…Mt. of Olives, Tomb of the Kings Mt. Scophus, saw the dead sea from a distance…the Jordan River (washed my hands + feet in it) and Valley and the Chapel...

The contiguous 48 states have always been in awe of the Hawaiian Islands. Virginia yearbooks are full of prom themes like “Hawaiian Sunset,” “Island Paradise,” and “A Luau.” So, it is not too much of a surprise to open the 1923 edition of the Virginia Intermont College’s yearbook and be greeted with a very un-Virginia-like scene of tiny boats sailing towards a volcanic-looking mountain. Yet, who picked it? And why? And did it hold any meaning to the Southern young ladies attending?

The Library of Virginia’s first-floor lobby and Exhibition Gallery are open Monday-Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The second-floor Reading Rooms are open Tuesday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and two Saturdays each month. More information is available here.