2000 –2018
These pages are
part of the Schuyler co., NY Genweb page. Not for commercial
use.
*
Memorial
to Louise Stillman (1913 - 2000)
a
much-honored & respected historian & politician of Schuyler
co., NY.
*
Schuyler woman earns spot in history
by Sara Bonisteel
of the Elmira
Star-Gazette (available
in an on-line edition)
Copyright
2000 Star Gazette. Used with permission.
MONTOUR FALLS — The buildings at the intersection of Main
and Genesee streets owe much
to Louise Vickio Stillman.
In 1978, she helped catalog the homes along the "Glorious T"
near Chequagua Falls, and persuaded the National Historic Register to
add 13 of the buildings to its books.
Mrs. Stillman, 87, died Monday, Sept. 18, at Schuyler Hospital of natural causes.
"She was a very integral part of this village and the history
of this village," said Montour Falls
Mayor Marjorie
Tewksbury. "And we just haven’t really found anyone
to replace her and her
knowledge of it."
Helping to preserve the past was Mrs. Stillman’s passion.
She served as both the village and
town historian for Montour,
president and trustee of the Schuyler County Historical Society, and
even wrote a book about the county’s history entitled
"Schuyler — Around and About."
"Growing up, we never had a history to go back into,"
Mrs. Stillman told the Star-Gazette in
1994 after she published
the book. "Students are always looking for history."
Mrs. Stillman lived in Montour Falls for most of her life.
She was born in the village on Aug. 13, 1913, to Joseph and Rachel
Petrone Vickio, and was one of 10 children. She and her twin
brother, Louis Vickio of Watkins Glen, were the only two in the
family to attend
college. "Being twins, you know, we
always thought the world of each other," Vickio said. "We
looked out for each other."
Mrs. Stillman went on to graduate from Marquette University in
Milwaukee and received a
master’s degree from Geneseo
State College.
She served as the Watkins Glen High School librarian for 30 years
starting in 1940, and helped
run Stillman’s Greenhouses
and Garden Center and Stillman’s Wholesale Nursery with her
husband, George. Mrs. Stillman was a dedicated librarian,
reading every new book before it went on the shelf, Vickio said.
"She scanned through them enough to get a knowledge about what
they were about," he said. The practice would help her point
patrons to the proper book.
It was her husband, a former mayor of Montour Falls and a Schuyler
County legislator, who
paved Mrs. Stillman’s way into
politics. After his death in 1982, she took an active role in
the Democratic Party. She served on the Montour Village Board
of Appeals and as Chairwoman of the Schuyler County Democratic
Committee.
Her work earned the respect of then-Gov. Mario Cuomo, who
appointed Mrs. Stillman to the
Finger Lakes State Parks,
Recreation and Historic Preservation Commission. When Mrs.
Stillman retired as county Democratic chairwoman in 1984, Cuomo sent
a letter
praising her support. "You have certainly earned
the right to step down," he wrote.
Schuyler County honored Mrs. Stillman in 1995 by inducting her
into its Hall of Fame for her
work as a historian.
She suffered a stroke three years ago that slowed her down, but
her work compiling the history of
her hometown and county will
help inform the generations to come.
"She was on top in Montour, let’s put it that way," Vickio said.
OBITUARY
Mrs. Louise Vickio Stillman
.... Burial will be at St. Mary’s of the Lake Cemetery,
Watkins Glen. Memorial
donations may be sent to the St. Mary’s
of the Lake sound system fund, St. Mary’s of the Lake
Church,
905 N. Decatur St., Watkins Glen, NY 14891.
STILLMAN, Louise
of Montour Falls, NY
Age 87 of Owego St., Montour Falls, NY, died September 18, 2000 at
Schuyler Hospital,
Montour Falls, NY. Louise was born
August 13, 1913 at Montour Falls, NY to Joseph and
Rachel
Petrone Vickio. Louise was predeceased by her husband, George
Stillman; her father,
Joseph Vickio; and mother, Rachel Vickio;
brothers, Guy, Nicholas, Michael and William
Vickio; sisters,
Mamie Brush, Minnie Tolli, Marguerite Vickio and Mary Jane Vickio.
Louise is
survived by her twin brother, Louis (Mary) Vickio,
Watkins Glen, NY; sisters-in-law, Rachel
(Nicholas) Vickio and
Bernice (Michael) Vickio. She had several nieces, nephews,
great nieces
and nephews.
Louise Stillman was a Montour native and a graduate of Cook
Academy. She graduated from
Marquette University and
received a MLS degree from SUNY Geneseo. Louise was also a High
School librarian in the Watkins Glen School District for 30
years. Following her retirement she
became founder and
President of the Schuyler County Association of Retired Teachers.
She was
a also a past Vice-President of the NYS Retired
Teachers Association of the Southern Tier, and
was
Vice-President of the Board of Trustees of the Montour Falls Memorial
Library.
"Glorious T" at the foot of Chequagah Falls owes its
fame to her efforts in the field of Historic
Preservation.
She was called "Mrs. Montour Falls", the honor bestowed on
her by the Montour
Falls Business Association. Louise was
past President and Trustee of the Schuyler County
Historical
Society; past President and Trustee of the Schuyler County Landmark
Society; a
Trustee of the Regional Conference of Historical
Agencies; a member of both the National Trust
for Historic
Preservation, and the Finger Lakes Parks, Recreation, and Historic
Preservation
Commission, to which she was appointed by Governor
Cuomo, who was also a good friend. In
addition, she was
the historian for both the Village of Montour, and the Town of
Montour. In
these capacities she wrote numerous accounts
of local historical events, places, persons and is
responsible
for the placement of several buildings on the register of historic
places. She has
served on the Boards of the Schuyler
County Mental Health Society, the Disabilities Admissions
Committee
of ARC, the Senior Falls Business Association, and the American
Legion Auxiliary
Post 882, of which was was past President.
She was also a member of the Schuyler County
Chapter of AARP.
She was a 50-year member of the Catholic Daughters of the Americas
#628
and a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church and St.
Benedicts.
Her political and government activities were serving on the
Montour Village Board of Appeals.
She was the past Chairman of
the Schuyler County Democratic Committee, and was a member of
the
Democratic National Committee, the NYS Democratic Committee and the
Schuyler County
Democratic Women’s Club. She was
also a member of the Schuyler County League of Women
Voters.
She is a past Board Member of both the Montour Falls Housing
Authority, and the
Montour Falls Village Planning Board, as
well as past President of the 8&40 Schuyler County
Salon.
In 1980 she was named to the Honor Roll of Distinguished Members,
by the NYS Retired
Teachers Association. In 1983 she
received the Citizen of the Year Award by the Montour Falls
Business
Association, and in 1987 was Honoree of the Business and Professional
Women of
Schuyler County as their "Citizen of the Year".
Louise has written much about the County’s
history and
was the Deputy County Historian in addition to her roles as Town of
Montour
Historian, and Village of Montour Historian. She
was inducted in the Schuyler County Hall of
Fame on October 27,
1995 as Historian. In 1989 she made a donation of $10,000 to
Schuyler
Hospital, for the Stillman Room, in memory of her late
husband, George Stillman, who was
Mayor of Montour Falls, and a
long time member of the Schuyler County Legislature.
Burial will be at St. Mary’s of the Lake Cemetery, Watkins
Glen, NY. Memorial donations may
be sent to St. Mary’s of
the Lake sound system fund, St. Mary’s of the Lake Church,
Watkins
Glen, NY.
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