Yearbook West End High School Zephyr Annual and 36 similar items

This listing is for a 1945 West End High School, Nashville, Tennessee Yearbook titled, The Zephyr. Features William P. Lawrence as a sophomore. See info below: William Porter "Bill" Lawrence (January 13, 1930 - December 2, 2005) was a decorated United States Navy vice admiral and Naval Aviator who served as Superintendent of the US Naval Academy from 1978 to 1981. He was a noted pilot, the first Naval Aviator to fly twice the speed of sound in a naval aircraft, and one of the final candidates for the Mercury Space program. During the Vietnam War, Lawrence was shot down while on a combat mission and spent six years as a prisoner of war, from 1967 to 1973. During this time, he became noted for his resistance to his captors. Author of Tennessee State Poem While a prisoner of war, Lawrence mentally composed poetry to help keep up his spirits. During a 60-day period of solitary confinement, he composed, by memory, the poem "Oh Tennessee, My Tennessee," in honor of his native state. In 1973, the Tennessee State Legislature adopted the poem as Tennessee's official state poem.\ Oh Tennessee, My Tennessee What Love and Pride I Feel for Thee. You Proud Ole State, the Volunteer, Your Proud Traditions I Hold Dear. I Revere Your Heroes Who Bravely Fought our Country's Foes. Renowned Statesmen, so Wise and Strong, Who Served our Country Well and Long. I Thrill at Thought of Mountains Grand; Rolling Green Hills and Fertile Farm Land; Earth Rich with Stone, Mineral and Ore; Forests Dense and Wild Flowers Galore; Powerful Rivers that Bring us Light; Deep Lakes with Fish and Fowl in Flight; Thriving Cities and Industries; Fine Schools and Universities; Strong Folks of Pioneer Descent, Simple, Honest, and Reverent. Beauty and Hospitality Are the Hallmarks of Tennessee. And O'er the World as I May Roam, No Place Exceeds my Boyhood Home. And Oh How Much I Long to See My Native Land, My Tennessee.