Ruth F. Simpson

b. 18 January 1912, d. 25 August 2012
  • Ruth F. Simpson was born on 18 January 1912 in Pine Grove, Wetzel County, West Virginia.
  • She was known as Reggie.
  • James Laurel Simpson and Mary Louise Prenatt appeared in the US federal census of 1 January 1920 in Pine Grove, Grant District, Wetzel County, West Virginia. Other members of the household included Ruth F. Simpson, Marie Jean Simpson, Mary Louise Simpson, William Edwin Simpson and Margaret Simpson.
  • Mary Louise Prenatt appeared in the US federal census of 1 April 1930 in Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia, at 447 Pennsylvania Avenue. Other members of the household included Ruth F. Simpson, Mary Louise Simpson, James Lowry Simpson, William Edwin Simpson and Margaret Simpson.
  • She and Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder were educated at West Virginia University.
  • She married Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder, son of Michael Schwartzwalder and Hattie Stewart, on 16 March 1934 in Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia, by license issued the same day, with A. C. Young, Minister of First Christian Church, officiating. At the time of their marriage, both were teachers, the groom residing in Pt. Pleasant and the bride in Morgantown.
  • Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder and Ruth F. Simpson appeared in the US federal census of 1 April 1940 in Parkersburg, Wood County, West Virginia, at 1705 Spring Street. Other members of the household included Hattie Stewart and Mary Louise Prenatt. In 1935 Ben and Reggie and Ben's mother were living in rural Tyler County, and Reggie's mother was living in Morgantown.
  • The following appeared on 6 September 1968 in The Dominion-News: Colonel William E. Simpson of Del Mar., California, died at his home on August 19, 1968. He was 55 years old and had been retired from the service since 1960.
         He was a former resident of Morgantown, West Virginia, and a graduate of West Virginia University in 1936. While in the University he was a member of the varsity basketball and track teams. He served in the U.S. Infantry in France during World War II and later in the paratroopers prior to retirement.
         He was the son of the late James L. and Louise Pernatt Simpson and was preceded in death by a sister, Francis.
         Survivors include his wife Lucy, a son William; sisters Mrs. Albert Brown (Marie) of Westport, Connecticut; Mrs. Paul Cox (Louise) of St. Marys, W.Va; Mrs. Floyd Schwartzwalder (Ruth) of Syracuse, New York; and Mrs. Robert Piefer (Margaret) of Monroeville, Alabama; and brother James L. Simpson of Charleston, W.Va.
         The Rev. George McCune of the United Methodist Church of St. Marys will conduct a grave side service at the Lowe Cemetery, Pine Grove, West Virginia, at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 7.
  • The following appeared on 29 April 1983 in The New York Times: Ben Schwartwalder, who recruited a series of acclaimed running backs as he restored Syracuse to football glory during 25 sparkling seasons that included an undefeated campaign in 1959, died yesterday at Northside Hospital in St. Petersburg, Fla. He was 83.
         Mr. Schwartzwalder, a resident of Syracuse who maintained a winter home in St. Petersburg, died of a heart attack, his wife said.
         When Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder (Ben was a childhood nickname bestowed by a brother) arrived at Syracuse at the age of 41 in 1949, he was not at all what the alumni had hoped for to revive their football program.
         Syracuse, once a national powerhouse, had won all of nine games over the previous four seasons, and Schwartzwalder, a former high school coach whose collegiate career consisted of three seasons at tiny Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa., seemed hardly the man to turn things around.
         Syracuse, once a national powerhouse, had won all of nine games over the previous four seasons, and Schwartzwalder, a former high school coach whose collegiate career consisted of three seasons at tiny Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa., seemed hardly the man to turn things around.
         As Schwartzwalder later put it, "The alumni wanted a big-name coach. They got a long-name coach."
         But Schwartzwalder, a decorated World War II paratrooper, simply went to work developing a program that made him the most victorious coach in Syracuse history, with a record of 153-91-3.
         Although he later became famous for his recruitment of a long line of talented running backs -- including Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Jim Nance, Floyd Little and Larry Csonka -- Schwartzwalder's success was founded on an earlier triumph, persuading the Syracuse chancellor, William Pearson Tolley, to increase the number of football scholarships from 12 a year to eventually 25 a year.
         As the number of scholarships increased, Schwartzwalder, an honors student during his years playing football and wrestling at the University of West Virginia, did not chafe under the directive that he recruit only academically qualified players. He said good students generally made better athletes, anyway.
         So did a good coach. His running offenses, based on an unorthodox unbalanced line, were impenetrable to rival coaches, and his practices, generally conducted at full tilt, were all but unbearable to his players.
         Schwarzwalder became a campus legend for his absent-mindedness (he once wore his pajama bottoms to a morning practice), but it was a foible with an advantage. As his wife once explained, "He simply refuses to clutter up his mind with anything but football."
         The concentration paid off. In 1959, the year the Orangemen were voted the nation's top team after capping an 11-0 season with a 23-14 victory over Texas in the Cotton Bowl, Schwartzwalder was named coach of the year.
         The offense led the nation, averaging 313.6 rushing yards, 451.5 total yards and 39 points a game, and the defense led the nation in holding opponents to just 96.2 yards a game and only 19.3 rushing yards.
         Mr. Schwartzwalder, who retired after the 1973 season, is survived by his wife, Ruth, known as Reggie; two daughters, Mary Scofield of Winesburg, Ohio, and Susan Walker of South Salem. N.Y., and five grandchildren.
  • Ruth F. Simpson became a widow at the 28 April 1993 death of her husband Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder.
  • The following appeared on 9 June 2005 in The Charleston Gazette: James Lowry Simpson, 95, of Charleston, formerly of Pine Grove, passed away Monday, May 30, 2005, at CAMC Memorial Hospital.
         He was a lifelong member of Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral, Charleston.
          He was retired from Union Carbide Engineering Department as Manager of Design Engineering and Construction with 34 years of service. He was also a retired Lt. Colonel from The Corps of Engineers, US Army with over five years active service in World War II, including 31 months service in the China-Burma-India Theater of Operations, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service.
         He graduated from West Virginia University in 1932 with a BS Degree in Electrical Engineering. He was a life member of Eta Kappa Nu, National Honorary Electrical Engineering Society; TROA, The Retired Officers Association; CBIVA, China-Burma-India Veterans Association; and the West Virginia University Alumni Association.
         He was a retired Registered Professional Engineer; a retired member of the American Arbitration Association; a member of the Lettermen's Club; and the Emeritus Club at West Virginia University.
         He is preceded in death by his wife of 67 years, Mary Elizabeth Mason Simpson and one daughter, Kathryn S. McKenzie.
         He is survived by two daughters, Elizabeth Gold of Hilton Head, S.C. and Ann Mason Chabot of Badson Park, Fla; two sons, J. Lowry Simpson of Charleston and Thomas Mason Simpson of Tucson, Az; one sister, Ruth Schwartzwalder of Syracuse, N.Y; eight grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and one great great-grandchild.
         Memorial Mass will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 11, at Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral. Visitation will be at the church one hour prior to Memorial Mass.
         In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to: Hubbard Hospice House, Building Fund, 1001 Kennawa Drive, Charleston, WV 25311.
         Barlow-Bonsall Funeral Home, Charleston is in charge of arrangements.
  • Ruth F. Simpson died on 25 August 2012 at age 100 in Syracuse, Onondage County, New York, at Crouse Hospital.
  • The following appeared on 27 August 2012 in The Syracuse Post-Standard: Ruth Simpson "Reggie" Schwartzwalder, 100, of Syracuse, died peacefully and surrounded by her family on August 25, 2012, at Crouse Hospital.
         Reggie was the widow of legendary Syracuse University head football coach Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder, who died in 1993. Reggie was born on January 18, 1912, in Pine Grove, West Virginia. She later moved to Morgantown, West Virginia, where she attended West Virginia University. There she met her future husband, Ben, and both graduated from the university in 1933. She was a member of the Alpha Delta Phi sorority and the Mortar Board, an honorary society.
         Reggie and Ben moved to Syracuse in 1949. Reggie was a loyal Syracuse University sports fan, avid bridge player and friend to many. She was a beloved member of the community who always remembered names and had a kind word and smile for others. Reggie will be missed greatly by her friends and family.
         She is survived by her two daughters, Susan Walker and Mary Scofield; five grandchildren, Felicia Walker Saferstein, Brian Walker, Elizabeth Walker Joshi, Drew Scofield and Susan Scofield Martin; and eight great-grandchildren, Allison, Dale and Chaz Saferstein, Silas and Calvin Walker, Shefali and Shaan Joshi, and Ben Martin.
         A memorial service is being planned at First English Lutheran Church on October 6, 2012, at a time to be determined.
         In lieu of flowers, contributions in Reggie's memory may be made to the Ben Schwartzwalder Athletic Scholarship, the Orange Club, Manley Field House, Syracuse, NY 13244.
  • The following appeared on 7 October 2012 in The Syracuse Post-Standard: Ruth Simpson "Reggie" Schwartzwalder: A Final Farewell to SU's First Lady. Family, Football Luminaries Gather to Pay Respects to Reggie Schwartzwalder. The grip of morning rain and gray gave way to afternoon sunshine. Autumn's colors began to pop in the crisp air. It was a perfect Archbold Saturday, a fitting backdrop to celebrate the First Lady of Syracuse University football.
         About 100 friends and family members gathered at Syracuse's First English Lutheran Church on Saturday for a memorial service to honor the late Ruth Simpson "Reggie" Schwartzwalder.
         The wife of legendary Syracuse University football coach Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder died in Syracuse on Aug. 25 at the age of 100.
         "She was special," said former Syracuse running back Floyd Little, a member of both the professional and college football hall of fame. "She said Ben would never say who was his favorite running back. And Reggie says, "well we all know."
         "When Ben passed, she called and asked if I would be the person to represent all of the players that ever played for Ben when we had a service at Hendricks Chapel. That was a tremendous honor for me to stand and very emotional because he saved my career."
         Little said that Schwartzwalder presented him with the service wings he'd earned for jumping as a paratrooper at Normandy during World War II. He offered the gift as incentive for Little to finish his degree at Syracuse and fulfill a promise Schwartzwalder made to Little's mother that he graduate from the university.
         "Every time I think of that moment, it's a very emotional experience," Little said. "Very few things affect me long term. My relationship with Ben and Reggie was significant to my career and part of my journey that I shall never forget."
         Former Syracuse head coach Dick MacPherson attended the memorial service as did several former players including Pat Stark, Pat Killorin, Jim Jerome, Bill Skyinskus, Norm Mordue, Tom McLaughlin, Bill Schoonover and former Syracuse sports information director Larry Kimball. They joined current assistant athletic directors Chris Gedney and Matt Palumb and about two dozen members of the Schwartzwalder family for the hour-long program.
         "She was a very good friend," said Thelma Dailey, who is 91. She is the wife of former Syracuse assistant coach Ted Dailey, who served on Schwartzwalder's coaching staff at Syracuse from 1949-1973. She said Reggie and Ben were attendants in her wedding and that Reggie was the first friend she made upon moving to Syracuse. "If I never live to be 100, she was wonderful," said Dailey, who lives in Maple Downs in Fayetteville. "A wonderful friend I have lost."
         Pastor Craig Herrick of First English Lutheran Church said the Archimedes Russell-designed church opened about the same time Reggie Schwartzwalder was born in West Virginia. He invoked images of seeing Reggie and Ben worshiping in the congregation of the mission-style church, one whose community has changed significantly since the Schwartzwalders first came to town.
         Reggie is buried next to her husband in Onondaga County Veterans Memorial Cemetery on Onondaga Hill. Herrick said it's not a place for tombstones, but if it were, her memorial might read, "Only the good die young."
         The Schwartzwalders' daughters -- Susan Walker and Mary Scofield -- said their mother was a vibrant woman who loved style, cared deeply for their father and stayed active playing bridge, working New York Times crossword puzzles and living a quiet life for nearly two decades following the death of her husband.
         "Reggie was very fair-minded," said Mary Scofield, who lives in Queens.
         "She didn't judge," said Susan Walker, who now lives in Ponte Vedra, Fla. "She was nice to everyone; kind."
         Their mother kept her pulse on the football program. She attended a Syracuse football game last year. Who knows? She may have attended another this year until a fall in August set into motion her death.
         The symmetry of the day and season were sublime to celebrating a beloved member of the Syracuse football family and community.
         "She is synonymous with the success of the program," Little said. "We all miss Reggie. She really influenced a lot of people. She was the First Lady of Syracuse football. And will remain that way, as far as I'm concerned."
  • Last Edited: 26 Apr 2014

Family: Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder b. 2 June 1909, d. 28 April 1993