Yearbooks are a compendium of memories from a school year collected into a book with multiple copies to distribute. Their origin can be traced back to the 1800s when schools kept student information records, but over time they developed into scrapbooks, and eventually the high-quality print publications that we think of today. Some schools are transitioning to completely digital yearbooks to help make them more affordable.

The first formal, bound yearbook on record was published by Yale University in 1806 and was called “Profiles of Part of the Class Graduated at Yale College.” Other colleges and high schools picked up the trend, and yearbooks became a common part of the school experience for many. The local yearbooks that are most abundant in the collection are Brevard High School’s Brevardier and Rosman High School’s Oriole. Some copies of Brevard College’s Pertelote, and unnamed yearbooks from various local schools are also available.

It may surprise some to learn that yearbooks can be a source of genealogical information. Yearbooks can reveal information about your relatives such as their full name and nicknames; their graduation year and major if attending college; their clubs, activities, accolades and awards; class photos to see who their contemporaries were; their social circles and family connections; their personality through superlatives, quotes, inscriptions, and clothing; and their community through seeing familiar teachers, events, and contemporary business ads.

A display on the 2^nd floor of the library that is on exhibit through summer 2025 highlights some of the yearbooks in the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room collection, including those of local high schools as well as some college, middle, and elementary school memory books. Memorabilia from extracurriculars, academic pursuits, and social opportunities paint a picture of life for school students over the years. Class photos through the years show only a piece of what is in the ever-growing NC Room collection that has been accumulated from donations over time.

Visitors can view the display and continue to the Local History department if they wish to see the greater collection of class photos, yearbooks, and memorabilia from schools in Transylvania County through the years.

Photographs and information for this column are provided by the Rowell Bosse North Carolina Room, Transylvania County Library. This article was written by Local History Librarian Laura Sperry. Sources available upon request.