Time Capsule Buried at Virginia Beach City Hall Contains Book by ODU English Prof
A time capsule buried recently within a wall of Virginia Beach City Hall contains an assortment of photos, video clips, city documents and books, including a walking guide written by Old Dominion faculty member Katherine Jackson.
Jackson's book, "Walking Virginia Beach" (Falcon Publishing), goes into detail about various options available for exploring the city on foot. The guidebook, complete with maps, details 20 walks throughout Virginia Beach and surrounding cities. Jackson also offers advice on restaurants, attractions, beaches, parks and other great places to walk around Virginia Beach.
The late January time capsule event was held just three months after city officials opened a container buried in 1969, only to find its contents completely destroyed due to a lack of waterproofing. The newly buried time capsule will be opened in 2063 to mark the city's centennial, according to a Virginian-Pilot report on the event.
Several adjustments were made to the capsule this time, including embedding it 3 feet off the ground in a wall of City Hall and incorporating a design that will withstand any wet conditions.
Jackson, who has lived in Virginia Beach since 1976, is a senior lecturer in the English department at ODU, where she has taught writing and literature courses, and served as a student adviser, since 1999. She has served as the lead English faculty member at ODU Virginia Beach since 2006. Aside from her work at the university, she also contributes to a walking and biking blog, "ShoreLines," for the Virginia Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Jackson received a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing from ODU, and a bachelor's from the University of Virginia. Her novel, "False Cape," is an expansion of the thesis she wrote as part of the M.F.A. program. She is also working on a second novel, as yet untitled.
To learn more about Jackson's walking guide, go to the "Walking Virginia Beach" Amazon page. For more on walking opportunities in Virginia Beach, visit the "Shorelines" blog.