Virginia's Legacy

Virginia in her natural habitat

Virginia Hansen never strayed from her morals and lifestyle, even when her lifestyle didn’t fit the social norm. Although she strayed from the lifestyle that was favored for her generation, she was not an outcast. Her relationships with people inside and outside of her family are proof of this. She rejected men’s proposals and the opportunity of creating her own family, but she fit the mold of the housewife through how she lived her life. Her maternal personality shows through her private and public life as a librarian and schoolteacher, and world sphere of communicating with people around the world in extremely feminine ways.

Her devotion to her religion, shown through the countless hours she dedicated to service ranging from cooking meals for families in need to crafting for all sorts of Relief Society events, though she never fulfilled one of the biggest suggestions: to get married and have children. She dedicated her work and most of her life to children, too. Hundreds of children’s lives were affected positively by Virginia’s work and lifestyle, as she acted as a maternal figure in the library and as a teacher. Women like Virginia also affected the future of women’s rights: a pamphlet published in 1985, “Jobs for Women: A Plea for Equality of Opportunity,” uses examples of women just like Virginia as proof that professional women benefit their communities. There is even a chapter entitled, “Educational and Vocational Guidance in Rural Areas,” which discussed the importance of raising young women who knew that they had options away from the farm: a lesson that Virginia had learned all by herself several decades earlier. [2]

To a modern person, Virginia Hansen may seem to be an anomaly of her era. However, because the push for domesticity in the post war period was actually a deviation from a long-standing trend of women entering the workplace and redefining their feminine identities, [3] Virginia may not have felt that she was very different from the women she had looked up to as a child.

Virginia and Mae Hanson's grave.

Although Virginia's records show her last name is spelled with an 'o', Utah State University's records contain the spelling with an 'e'.

Virginia died in a violent car accident when a train struck the car she was driving with her sister Mae on January 25, 1978. She was 70 years old. She was remembered lovingly by many for her selfless service to her job, her community, and her religion.  Her spunky personality lives through the letters, journals, plays, and short stories that really represent who she was in her lifetime. She and Mae, who also never married, are buried together in Logan City Cemetery.