Ernest Schelling papers, 1867-1994

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Summary

Creators:
Schelling, Ernest, 1876-1939
Abstract:
The Ernest Schelling papers largely consist of printed matter, photographs, and memorabilia, much of it relating to Schelling's service as a major in the United States Army during World War I and as an assistant military attaché in Switzerland during and immediately after that war. The papers also contain materials pertaining to Schelling's long career as a classical pianist and conductor, and especially to his friendship with the Polish musician and statesman, Ignace (Ignacy) Paderewski. There is some personal correspondence in the collection, as well as correspondence belonging to Lucie (Lucy) Schelling (Ernest Schelling's first wife) and Helen "Peggy" Schelling (his second wife and widow).
Extent:
9 manuscript boxes, 4 oversize boxes (9.6 Linear Feet)
Language:
In English, French, and German
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Ernest Schelling papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Background

Scope and content:

The Ernest Schelling papers largely consist of printed matter, photographs, and memorabilia, much of it relating to Schelling's service as a major in the United States Army during World War I and as an assistant military attaché in Switzerland during and immediately after that war. The World War I materials include copies of American government publications relating to military affairs, clippings, serial issues, and numerous photographs depicting soldiers of the American Expeditionary Forces in action in France and Germany. There are also copies of proclamations issued by the German military in occupied Belgium. In addition, the papers contain Schelling's translation of one volume of the official German history of World War I. Official and personal correspondence, memoranda, reports, printed matter, and other materials relating to Schelling's service as an assistant military attaché can also be found in the Incremental Materials (Boxes 8-13).

Also included in the collection are materials pertaining to Schelling's long career as a classical pianist and conductor, and especially to his friendship with the Polish musician and statesman, Ignace (Ignacy) Paderewski. There are photographs of Paderewski, including ones from his childhood, as well as programs relating to concert performances by Paderewski.

There is also some personal correspondence in the collection, as well as correspondence belonging to Lucie (Lucy) Schelling (Ernest Schelling's first wife) and Helen "Peggy" Schelling (his second wife and widow). The collection also contains significant memorabilia, including various awards received by Schelling, as well as his World War I army uniform.

Biographical / historical:

Known affectionately by his youngest fans as "Uncle Ernest," Ernest Schelling was an American pianist and composer, the founder and for sixteen years the conductor of the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Young People's concerts until his untimely death in 1939. Born in New Jersey in 1876 to a Swiss father and an English mother, Schelling was a child prodigy. His father, Dr. Felix Schelling, a physician and a musician, was his first teacher. Ernest made his piano debut at the age of four-and-a-half at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia; at the age of seven, he entered the Paris Conservatory, the youngest pupil ever accepted. In 1896, Ignace Paderewski accepted the young American as his student. Schelling visited Paderewski during the summer months in Zakopane, high in the Tatra Mountains of southern Poland, as well as in the Paderewskis' palatial villa of Riond-Bosson in Morges, above Lake Geneva. Schelling's 1900 London and 1905 New York debuts brought him musical acclaim and fame, in no small measure a tribute to Paderewski. The mentorship soon turned into a friendship that lasted a lifetime. Schelling had a summer home on Lake Geneva, only a few miles from the Paderewskis', and they spent much time together. In fact, Schelling and his wife were the organizers of the great pageant in honor of Paderewski on his name day of July 31, 1914, the eve of the outbreak of World War I, an event movingly described in Paderewski's own memoirs.

The tragic course of World War I on the continent he considered his second homeland and his close association with Paderewski, who soon became the leader of humanitarian relief and political information work on behalf of Poland in Allied Europe and in the United States, were important factors in Ernest Schelling's decision to become an active participant. The event that likely influenced his decision to enlist was the sinking of the Sussex in the English Channel by a German U-boat. Among the eighty passengers who died were friends of both Schelling and Paderewski, the renowned Spanish pianist and composer Enrique Granados and his wife, Amparo, orphaning six children. In the spring of 1917, Schelling took a leave from his musical career and joined the US Army. With his intimate knowledge of European cultures and fluency in several languages, he was sent to the Army War College and, after completing a crash course, was given a captain's commission and assigned to the military intelligence branch of the General Staff. From September 1917 until October 1919, Schelling served as assistant military attaché at the American Legation in Bern, Switzerland. Much of what Schelling did involved translation and analysis, but he also provided some services for the French government, earning him the French Legion of Honor. Schelling advanced to the rank of major while still in Europe, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal after the war. Immediately after the November 1918 armistice, he was sent by the Army into German-occupied area to monitor troop withdrawal and by the American Red Cross to assist with the release and repatriation of American prisoners and civilians. He then was sent into Poland to liaison with his old friend, Ignace Paderewski, now the prime minister of the newly reestablished Polish state. Schelling's work in Poland earned him one of Poland's highest decorations, the Order of Polonia Restituta.

Date Event
1876 July 26
Born, Belvedere, New Jersey
1888
Began studying piano with Ignace Paderewski
1917
Commissioned as major in the United States Army
1917-1919
Served as assistant military attaché, American Legation, Berne, Switzerland
1924-1939
Conductor, Young People's Concerts of the New York Philharmonic Symphonic Society
1936-1938
Music director, Baltimore Symphony
1939
Died
Acquisition information:
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library Archives in 2012 from the family of Schelling's second wife, Helen "Peggy" Marshall, later Mrs. Helen Scholz, with incremental material received later.
Physical location:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Boxes 5-6 may not be used without permission of the Archivist. The remainder of the collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.

Terms of access:

For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Ernest Schelling papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Location of this collection:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003, US
Contact:
(650) 723-3563
hooverarchives@stanford.edu
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