TABLE OF CONTENTS
A Finding Aid to the Sylvia R. Jacobson Papers. 1939-1994.
Manuscript Collection No. 681
Introduction |
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| Repository: | The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives |
| Creator: | Jacobson, Sylvia R.,1911-1994. |
| Title: | Sylvia R. Jacobson Papers. |
| Dates: | 1939-1994 |
| Quantity: | 0.8 linear feet (2 Hollinger boxes) |
| Abstract: | The Sylvia R. Jacobson papers document Ms. Jacobson's experience as a hostage on a skyjacked plane that landed in the Jordanian desert in September 1970. The plane was skyjacked by members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). Materials in the collection include personal stories, periodical clippings, correspondence, and several essays by Ms. Jacobson on the individual and group behavioral responses she observed during the skyjacking. The span dates for the collection are 1939-1994. |
| Collection Number: | MS-681 |
| Language: | Collection material in English. |
Biographical Sketch
Sylvia Rosalie Jacobson was born on May 9, 1911 in New York City to Rosalie Hartogensis and Albert Jacobson. She grew up in Riverdale, New York. She received her B.A. from Hunter College of the City of New York in 1932, and her Masters in Social Work from the Columbia University School of Social Work in 1941, specializing in psychiatric social work. During World War II, she worked as a psychiatric social worker with the American Red Cross in United States Naval Hospitals. Ms. Jacobson also taught in several university schools of social work, including as an associate professor at the Florida State University School of Social Work in Tallahassee, Florida, where she was a long-time resident. She was also an active member of Temple Israel in Tallahassee, as well as a member of Hadassah and the National Council of Jewish Women.
On Sunday, September 6, 1970, Ms. Jacobson was returning home from a summer course at Hebrew University in Jerusalem when her plane was skyjacked by members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). Her TWA jetliner, along with a SWISSAIR jet and a BOAC plane, landed in the Jordanian desert where the passengers spent ten days. Jews were separated from non-Jews and kept as hostages to terrorist demands. Ms. Jacobson was rescued along with other passengers with the help of the International Red Cross. She finally arrived in Tallahassee, Florida on Wednesday, September 16, 1970. Along with delivering speeches to many audiences, Ms. Jacobson wrote several essays on her skyjacking experience, the individual and group behavioral responses she observed, and the dynamics of hostages and their captors.
Ms. Jacobson died on Wednesday, April 27, 1994 in Tallahassee, Florida at the age of 82.
Scope and Content Note
The Sylvia R. Jacobson Papers consist mainly of documents about skyjacking and Ms. Jacobson's specific skyjacking incident and experience in September 1970. Materials include personal stories, periodical clippings, correspondence, and several essays by Ms. Jacobson on the individual and group behavioral responses she observed during her skyjacking. Other materials include Ms. Jacobson's personal papers as well as general articles on flights, survivor syndrome and terrorism. Materials are arranged alphabetically by subject title, and either chronologically or alphabetically within each subject. The span dates for the collection are 1939-1994.
Arrangement Note
This collection is arranged in two (2) series:
Conditions of Access and Use
Terms of Access
The collection is open for use; no restrictions apply.
Terms of Reproduction and Use
Copyright restrictions may apply. Authorization to publish, quote, or reproduce, with exceptions for fair use, may be obtained through the American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati, Ohio. Please address queries to the Executive Director of the American Jewish Archives. For more information, see the American Jewish Archives copyright information webpage.
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
Footnotes and bibliographic references should refer to the Sylvia R. Jacobson Papers and the American Jewish Archives. A suggestion for at least the first citation is as follows:
[Description], [Date], Box #, Folder #. MS-681. Sylvia R. Jacobson Papers. American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Provenance
The Sylvia R. Jacobson papers were donated by Rabbi Stanley J. Garfein, Tallahassee, Florida, in February, 2002.
Processing Information
Processed by Rachel Schwartz, May, 2002.
Box and Folder Listing
| Series A: Skyjacking Files. 1970-1994. | |||||||||||
| The Skyjacking Files consist of 1.5 Hollinger boxes of material on skyjacking, Sylvia R. Jacobson, and Ms. Jacobson's skyjacking experience. Documents include correspondence, essays, periodical clippings, personal stories and symposium papers. Span dates are 1970-1994. | |||||||||||
| The series is arranged alphabetically by subject title, and materials are arranged chronologically within each subject except for Ms. Jacobson's essays, which are arranged alphabetically by document title. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | The Arab Hijack War. | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Articles. | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Correspondence. Burial. | |||||||||
| 1 | 4 | Correspondence. General. | |||||||||
| 1 | 5 | Correspondence. Legal; medical. | |||||||||
| 1 | 6 | Damages. | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Death; eulogies. | |||||||||
| 1 | 8 | El Mono Inquisitivo. | |||||||||
| 1 | 9 | Essays. | |||||||||
| 1 | 10 | Notes. | |||||||||
| 1 | 11 | Other documents. | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 2 | 1 | Periodical newsclippings. Skyjacking. General. | |||||||||
| 2 | 2 | Periodical newsclippings. Skyjacking. 1970. | |||||||||
| 2 | 3 | Periodical newsclippings. Jacobson, Sylvia R. | |||||||||
| 2 | 4 | Personal stories. | |||||||||
| 2 | 5 | Personal story. | |||||||||
| 2 | 6 | Questionnaires. Essay responses. | |||||||||
| 2 | 7 | References (from essays). | |||||||||
| 2 | 8 | Speech. Temple Israel (Tallahassee, Florida) 18 September 1970. | |||||||||
| 2 | 9 | Studies. Stress and anxiety in disaster situations. | |||||||||
| 2 | 10 | Supreme Court case. Finkelstein v. Trans World Airlines, Inc. | |||||||||
| 2 | 11 | Symposium papers. Skyjacking Control in the Perspectives of Current Research and Current Policy. | |||||||||
| Series B: General Files. 1939-1978. | |||||||||||
| The Subject Files consist of 0.5 Hollinger boxes of material relating to Ms. Jacobson's skyjacking experience. Documents include articles on flight anxiety, survivor syndrome and terrorism. Span dates are 1939-1978. | |||||||||||
| The series is arranged alphabetically by subject title, and the materials are arranged chronologically within each subject. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 2 | 12 | Flight anxiety. | |||||||||
| 2 | 13 | Flight staff. | |||||||||
| 2 | 14 | Survivors. Disaster. | |||||||||
| 2 | 15 | Survivors. Holocaust. | |||||||||
| 2 | 16 | Terrorism. | |||||||||
Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the AJA's online catalog.