Henry Schoellkopf

Henry Schoellkopf

Henry Schoellkopf c. 1907
Sport(s) Football
Biographical details
Born December 14, 1879
Buffalo, New York
Died December 5, 1912 (aged 36)
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Playing career
1900–1901
1903		 Cornell
Harvard
Position(s) Fullback, halfback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1907–1908 Cornell
Head coaching record
Overall 15–3–1

Statistics

Henry Schoellkopf (December 14, 1879[1] – December 5, 1912) was an American football player and coach. He was selected as an All-American fullback while attending Harvard Law School in 1903. He was the head coach of the Cornell Big Red football team from 1907 to 1908, compiling a record of 15 wins, three losses and one tie.

Athlete

Schoellkopf began his career as a football player at the Cascadilla School, where he played fullback.[2] He then enrolled at Cornell University and played college football for the Cornell Big Red football team from 1900 to 1901. While at Cornell, he also was president of both the Quill and Dagger society and the Zeta Psi Fraternity[3] and contributed to the development of the original Slope Day iteration. After graduating from Cornell in 1902, Schoellkopf enrolled at Harvard Law School. He played for the Harvard Crimson football team while he was a second-year law student at Harvard in 1903.[2][4] He played principally at the fullback position and some at the halfback position. While playing at Harvard, Schoellkopf was 23 years old, 5 feet 10 inches tall, and weighed 183 pounds.[2] After the 1903 college football season, Schoellkopf was selected as a first-team All-American fullback by Fielding H. Yost,[5] Charles Chadwick,[6] and the San Antonio Daily Light.[7]

Football coach

After graduating from Harvard Law School, he served for two years (1907 and 1908) as the head coach of Cornell's football team. In two years as Cornell's coach, Schoellkopf compiled a record of 15 wins, three losses and one tie.[8] His winning percentage of .816 ranks second all-time among Cornell coaches, trailing only Raymond Starbuck but ranking ahead of Glenn "Pop" Warner.[9]

Legal career and death

Schoellkopf moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he became a member in the law firm of Marksam & Schoellkopf and one of the most well known attorneys in Milwaukee. In December 1912, he committed suicide by shooting himself in the head with a revolver while alone in his office in Milwaukee. He was aged 36 at the time of his death.[10][11] Following Schoellkopf's death his close friend, Willard Straight, donated $100,000 to construct the Schoellkopf Memorial Hall in his honor. In response to Straight's generous gift, members of the Schoellkopf family and the Zeta Psi Fraternity donated $70,000 for the construction of Schoellkopf Field in honor of the Schoellkopf family patriarch, Jacob F. Schoellkopf Sr.[12][13][14][15][16]

See also

References

  1. ↑ U.S. Passport Application dated 1904 for Henry Schoellkopf of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Ancestry.com. U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 [database on-line]. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Washington D.C.; Passport Applications, 1795-1905; ARC Identifier 566612 / MLR Number A1 508; NARA Series: M1372; Roll #655.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Harvard Team Statistics". Harvard Crimson. 1903-11-21.
  3. ↑ Semicentennial Biographical Catalogue of the Zeta Psi Fraternity of North America. New York, NY, USA: Zeta Psi. December 1899.
  4. ↑ "Additions to Harvard Football Squad". The New York Times. 1903-09-23.
  5. ↑ "Picked Football Teams". Grand Traverse Herald. 1903-12-03.
  6. ↑ "Crack Football Eleven". Los Angeles Times. 1903-11-30.
  7. ↑ "The Ideal All-American Team". San Antonio Daily Light. 1903-12-14.
  8. ↑ "Harry Schoellkopf Records by Year". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  9. ↑ "Cornell Coaching Records". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved 2010-06-18.
  10. ↑ "Milwaukee Lawyer, Ex-Harvard Player, Commits Suicide". Racine Journal. 1912-12-10.
  11. ↑ "Ends Life With Bullet: Henry Schoellkopf, Milwaukee Merchant and Former Football Star, Shoots Himself". Logansport Pharos. 1912-12-05.
  12. ↑ The Schoellkopfs, A Family History, 1994 Copy Held by Cornell University Archives.
  13. ↑ Guide to the Campus: Cornell University 1920 P 80-82.
  14. ↑ NCAA Stadiums: Schoellkopf Field
  15. ↑ CORNELL'S NEW STADIUM.; Schoellkopf Field Will Be Ready for Use in the Spring of 1915., The New York Times, August 23, 1914.
  16. ↑ Schoellkopf Field, Cornell University, retrieved June 18, 2010.