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Note: Eschallier, New Castle, Pa, Dr. McDowell, Jan 18, 1918. Lived 35 1/2 Edgewood Av, New Castle, PA when born.
HOUSE PURCHASE of 1946: The family had rented residences on Delancy St and for a long time at 5307 Pine St. It appears that Marie was the purchaser or cosigner for her parents of the home at 4762 Chestnut St, Philadelphia. The agreement of sale, 3 April 1946, shows $500 at Agreement, $1,000 payment at time of sale, and $4,000 to be secured by Drew & Shearman at 5% for a period of 15 years on $4,000, total price $5,500. Settlement date to be 3 June 1946 or before. Witnessed by Philip A. Eschallier and Signed by Marie A Eschallier. Received by Drew & Shearman from Philip A. Eschallier $500 deposit on 4762 Chestnut St on 3 April 1946. Receipt from Land Title Bank and Trust Company for 3 May 1946, Marie A. Eschallier and Anna M. Eschallier paid $633.89 to be applied in settlement for prem 4762 Chestnut St. Marie was working steadily for the Bell Telephone Co.
MARRIAGE: Church of the Holy Apostles and Mediator, Episcopal Church, 51st and Spruce Sts. in West Philadelphia. Certificate of Marriage: I Js A Bamberger hereby certify that on the eighteenth day of May one thousand nine hundred and forty-six at Philadelphia John H. Shmidheiser and Marie A. Eschallier were by me united in marriage in accordance with License issued by the Clerk of the Orphans' Court of Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. Numbered 812059. Witnesses Dororthy M. Dunkin and Robert M. Groshon. J H A Bomberger, Rector, Minister of the Gospel, Church of the Holy Apostles and the Mediator.
BIOGRAPHY: From photo in Lakewood, OH marked by her mother, Marie is shown in dancing costume. I remember Mother said she took dancing lessons. From proof copy of photo she lived at 5129 Delancy St in Phila on July 8, 1930. 1936 graduate W Phila HS; 10 years employed Bell Telephone Co, Phila; active member of all churches she attended. She was a Sunday School teacher at Mediator in W. Phila. She played basketball in a church league in her teenage years in West Phila. She was also a Sunday School teacher at Cedar Park Presby Church as well as a Girl Scout leader and Cub Scout den mother; past officer of the Tuesday Club at the Germantown YWCA, active in women's golf, bowling, and competitive bridge.
REMEMRANCES BY IRENE FERGISON:
Remembrances of days with Marie Eschallier as told to Sandra by Irene Powell Ferguson. Irene knew Marie from their days at West Philadelphia High School and the Beta Sigma Sorority.
Marie went to the Episcopal Church of the Holy Apostles and Mediator, 51st and Spruce (trolley car ran on Spruce). Irene lived on Delancy, went to Oak Park Presbyterian Church. Mom went to Christian Endeavor at Oak Park as she knew the young people during high school days. Mom lived at 57th and Pine. Apt on 2nd floor. Irene remembers Pop and Muddy. Pop was tall and good looking. Muddy was short and plump. Marie slept on the pull out sofa in the living room. Her older brother Adrien was around home more than Jean. Pop was a gambler. Muddy would give him money to pay rent and it got gambled away instead of paying the rent.
The girls wanted to learn how to dance in high school. They went to Betty Wamsley's (Darby) house to practice dancing. Betty made onion sandwiches for refreshments. Marie was always concerned that she would be too tall for the guys. Marie danced the man's part for Irene to learn how to dance. They all learned and went to sorority dances with Beta Sigma sorority.
Somehow this sorority was connected with school.-West Philadelphia High School.
Elsie (last name not knon), head of it, came to monthly meetings at the Benjanmin Franklin Hotel. The custodians at the hotel always placed their big banner in the room for their meetings. The women discussed dances, bands, dinner, how much money to charge. Sometimes dances were held at the Ritz Carlton.. Most dances were at the Benjamin Franklin Hotel.
Boyfriends came to dances. Marie was always concerned that the man would be taller than her. So, Marie told Irene to dance and give a nod yes or no if the man were taller than Marie. Mom especially liked one of the McDonald boys (3 of them). Mildred Marvel (Jones) liked one, and Irene dated Jimmy. Irene remembers bicycling together at Valley Green with Oak Park Presbyterian youth.
In summer, one of the girls would get a bedroom for overnight and the rest of the girls just went for the day at Ocean City. All the girls would pile in and change to go on the beach. Ruth Schenberg (Marcarelli) (being a bit more sophisticated) went off on her own to find a nice looking man. Often she talked him into bringing back a box of donuts or coffee cake for those without dates.
Irene and Marie and others were officers of Beta Sigma. For Christmas sometimes the different chapters of Beta Sigma in the area filled a basket to give to a children's home.
One time they had a dinner dance at the Medford Lakes Cabin, NJ. Irene happened to be President at the time. Up in the balcony there was a bear about 4 feet high, with its mouth open. One of the girls took the bear from the Cabin and the sorority was responsible pay for it. She called around to the other chapters and asked if anyone would confess. She did. Irene had to return the bear across the river to Medford Lake in a car. She remembers the toll collector's funny expression at seeing the bear in the car. Irene had to explain what happened.
After she graduated in 1936, Marie got a job. It was a job introducing a new product, Spry. She got Irene to do the same thing. The job included being dropped off by a man who had a supply of one pound cans of Spry. He left the girls at a street with 16 one pound cans of Spry, a kosher product. The girls had to go door to door up the block and give a free can of spry to each homemaker. They were given a piece of chalk and had to write their ID numbers on the pavement in front of each house as a safety precaution. Then, they knocked on the door, and while waiting, they would start to take off the lid with the key. When the door was opened they started the spiel. "I have a free gift for you, a can of Spry. See how white and pure it is, etc." Then the girls closed the lid and handed it to lady and went on to the next house. When all 16 one pound cans were delivered, they went to the man in the car and had to give the 16 keys to prove they had done the job. Then they got 16 more cans!! This was Irene's first job. The pay was $12.50/week.
The girls went to dances and movies. By the time World War II came, Irene had married Gil and Mildred Marvel had married Ralph Jones. Both men were in the service. Marie was still single. The 3 girls wanted to do something to help the war effort. So, Marie volunteered for USO-dances and card parties for soldiers and sailors. Marie always had a car and could drive as her father was a used car salesman. Mom had borrowed one car and the door opened when they turned a corner. Excitement, joke!! Marie drove a Salvation Army canteen truck. There were
soldiers stationed throughout Fairmount Park. Small guard houses were in the park. They volunteered to take the canteen truck with a large coffee urn and trays of donuts to the soldiers. While coming back to the main building of Salvation Army one night, Marie accidentally missed the turn and the left side wheels of the canteen truck went on the RR track. It was the place where the circus trains used to come to unload on Gray's Ferry Av. The truck was straddling the railroad ties and the donuts jumped up and the urn swayed when they went over each tie. Mildred held the trays and Irene held the urn. Finally they got off the tracks but the truck stalled on the trolley tracks. A trolley came along and the driver had to take his change holder with him off the trolley and had other men try to help get the tuck out of the way. A group of little boys surrounded the truck and the girls were afraid in a strange neighborhood. They kept giving the boys donuts. The boys said there were soldiers nearby. It turned out there was a nearby barracks. Some little boys agreed to go for help from the soldiers. A big group of soldiers and boys came to rescue the girls. The Salvation Army was called and they said someone would come to get the truck. Some soldiers volunteered to take the girls home after their duty if the girls would direct them through the park. Irene directed them to 52nd and Parkside. Mildred told this to Ralph in a letter and he wrote back they she had to stop this kind of work. So they looked for something else to do.
They went to the headquarters of the Salvation Army on N. Broad St. and made early Sunday breakfast. Marie was a waitress, Mildred cooked bacon, Irene cooked the eggs. The kitchen had a big commercial grill that was too high for Irene so they placed an orange crate for her to stand on. Irene learned how eggs were ordered-two bulls eyes,(sunny side up). Marie came into the kitchen and told about the soldiers with their nurses in the dining hall. One soldier was blinded and his nurse told them how to find the food at twelve o'clock , 3 o'clock, etc. Irene remembers frying a complete case of eggs, the most she had ever done in one day.
Marie went to Bell Telephone company after the Spry days. Irene went to work for Industrial Trust Company Bank, Broad and Nedro. She was a bookkeeping machine operator for $15/week. When woman married, they had to stop. So Irene took off her wedding ring before an interview after that. She married Gil in 1939.
Prom night for high school, neither Irene nor Marie had dates. They went to a movie together instead. When they did get dates and needed an evening dress they went to 53rd and Market where there was a second hand dress shop. They went together and got gowns for their first dance.
Mom, Dad and Gil were good bridge players. Irene not very good since she was raised Presbyterian and not allowed to play cards as a kid. One night while playing together, Irene had to go to the bathroom after getting so many instructions from the good players. When she came back, she found her hand had been "dealt" a full hand of clubs. Irene was so upset. They confessed to stacking them on her. They never played bridge after that. Irene never enjoyed cards.
Irene went to work with Penn State Extension program and helped with cooking classes. Fondue was popular. She advised the ladies not to put all their cubes of beef in the pot at the same time. They didn't pay attention to her.
OBITUARY: THE REPORTER, 15 March 1996: Services for Marie A. Shmidheiser, 78, of Hatfiled Township, who died Wednesday evening, will be Monday morning in the Gwynedd Square Presbyterian Church, Upper Gwynedd. She was the wife of John H. Shmidheiser, and they would have observed their 50th wedding anniversary in May. Formerly of Phildelphia, she had lived in Hatfield Township since 1970.
Born in New Castle, she was the daughter of the late Philip Adrien and Anna Marie (Morel) Eschallier. She was a 1936 graduate of West Philadelphia High School. During her younger years, she worked for Bell Telephone Co. in Phildelphia for 10 years.
Mrs.Shmidheiser was a member of Gwynedd Square Presbyterian Church, Upper Gwynedd, where she was active in church affairs.
Her family says they will remember her as a devoted wife and mother. She was a Sunday School teacher, a Girl Scout leader, and a Cub Scout den mother. She was a past officer of the Tuesday Club at the Germantown YWCA and was active in women's golf, bowling and competitive bridge.
Besides her husband, she is survived by a daughter, Sandra J. Levine and her husband, John J. of Hatfield; a son, John P. Shmidheiser and his wife, Kathleen, of Havertown; two grandchildren, Leigh Ann and J. Kyle Shmidheiser; and a niece and nephew she helped raise, Nadine Herz of Kenosha, Wis. and A. Reid Eschallier of Doylestown.
She was preceded in death by two brothers, Adrien Louis Eschallier in 1987 and Jean Morel Eschallier, who died in Italy during World War II.
Arrangements are by Huff and Lakjer Funeral Home, Lansdale.
THE INQUIRER 16 March 1996: Marie A. Shmidheiser 1918-1996 Mar 13, of Hatfield Twp. Beloved wife of John H., loving mother of Sandra Levine & John P., & grandmother of Leigh Ann & J. Kyle Shmidheiser. Also survived by a niece, Nadine Herz & a nephew, A. Reid Eschallier. Relatives & friends are invited to attend the service, Mon., Mar 18 at 11 AM in the Gwynedd Square Presbyterian Church, 837 Sumneytown Pike, Lansdale, where friends may call after 10 AM. Interment George Washington Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers contributions in her memory may be made to the Alzheimer's Disease Assoc., 100 N. 17th St., 4th fl., Phila, PA 19103. Huff & Lakjer
Note: BIRTH: From notebook of her father P.A. Eschallier: Marie Anna
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