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Community asked to contribute memories of Schulman

By Rose Hooper and Lynn Hotaling
Schulman Sol Schulman and employee Muriel Snyder are shown in this 1930s photo in front of Schulman's Department Store, a building his father built in 1931 for $4,000. Failing health forced Schulman to close the doors on his Main Street business Oct. 29, but the 90-year-old businessman holds the record for being in the same downtown Sylva spot longer than any other merchant. Former customers who have stories about Schulman and his store are invited by the former Schulman's location Friday and Saturday, Feb. 28 and March 1, between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. so independent historians Sharon Fahrer and Jan Schochet can record those stories for posterity. Rachel Brown Phillips of Sylva plans to share a story of the bathing suits Schulman gave her and Snyder in 1934 so the two could compete in the Fourth of July Beauty Pageant. That generosity gave rise to a joke Schulman and Phillips have shared for 69 years. Do you have a story to tell about a visit to Schulman's or a favorite memory of the clothing store's proprietor, nonagenarian Sol Schulman?

If so, independent historians Sharon Fahrer and Jan Schochet invite you stop by Schulman's former location this Friday or Saturday, Feb. 28 and March 1, between the hours of 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. and have your story recorded for posterity.

Fahrer and Schochet plan to use the material they gather this weekend as part of a radio documentary about the legendary Sylva merchant's 70-plus years as a Main Street fixture.

The historians would also like to see any pictures of former customers with Schulman or that relate to the store and its merchandise, like a treasured wedding or prom photo featuring a gown from Schulman's.

In addition to telling their stories, those visiting Schulman's former store Friday and Saturday will have one last opportunity to shop at the downtown institution. After closing the store in December, Schulman donated his entire inventory to the WestCare Health System Foundation. The closeout sale, conducted by WestCare, continues today (Thursday) and Friday, Feb. 28, and ends Saturday, March 1, at 6 p.m.

Schochet and Fahrer said they got the idea for the documentary while working with Sol's son, David, on a project in Asheville.

"We thought this was a project we needed to do," said Schochet.

Schulman This photograph at Schulman's Department Store, which was taken in the 1940s, shows employee Bennie Reese, left, and owner Sol Schulman. After closing his business this past October, Schulman donated his quarter-million dollars worth of inventory to WestCare Health System Foundation. The closeout sale, conducted by WestCare, continues today (Thursday) and Friday, Feb. 28, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and ends Saturday, March 1, at 6 p.m.

Rachel Brown Phillips of Sylva has just such a story and plans to share it with the historians this weekend. Her tale centers around a bathing suit Sol Schulman once gave her so she could enter a beauty contest. Schulman's gift gave rise to a shared joke that has spanned almost seven decades.

Rachel Phillips' Story

"When are you ever going to pay me for that bathing suit?" Sol Schulman has teased Rachel Brown Phillips over the years.

The long-standing banter, lasting some 69 years, didn't even end when Phillips recently wrote the businessman a check for $2.98.

It all started in 1934 during Jackson County's Fourth of July celebration, which included a beauty pageant.

"My friend Muriel Snyder was working at Schulman's store at the time and Sol asked the two of us if we were going to enter the beauty contest. I told him I wasn't because I didn't have a bathing suit.

"He threw Muriel the keys to his store and said, 'You girls go pick out a bathing suit,'" recalled Phillips, who selected a one-piece knit suit with a beige top and green bottom.

Wearing the suit from Schulman's Department Store, 15-year-old Phillips won the contest.

That was just the beginning of her success in beauty pageants - and the bantering with Schulman.

"A few years ago, 60-some years later, Sol jokingly asked me when I was ever going to pay him for that suit. I reminded him it was a gift," said Phillips, now 84.

The bathing suit teasing only escalated with the years.

"Finally, one day I just wrote him a check for $2.98 - that's what the suit cost back in 1934," Phillips said, thinking she had ended the long-running joke.

"You know what Sol said? He told me I owed him $11 in interest!"

Schulman, who loves a good game as well as a good joke, then grinned and tore up the check.

The same year she won the Fourth of July contest, Phillips entered the Cotton Show Pageant.

"It was a big event lasting three nights. I remember there were loads of people there," said Phillips, who described how contestants wearing fashions made from cotton walked down the runway at the Lyric Theatre.

"The whole idea was to show that cotton clothes were just as pretty as silk and satin. They chose the winner by audience applause. Mildred Painter won first place and I was runner up."

Phillips won first place, however, in Sylva's Sweetheart Relay.

"It was like a relay race; couples lined up at each end of Main Street and you had to run and pass off a handkerchief to your sweetheart. Burch Allison and I won a free lunch at the Hole in the Wall, which was a little cafe Velt Wilson built in the space between the bank and Vance Hardware," said Phillips, noting that Wilson later built Velt's Cafe, presently Lulu's Cafe.

In the fall of 1935, Phillips represented Jackson County in the North Carolina State Pageant.

"We wore evening gowns, and they judged us on charm, poise and personality. I didn't win, but I had a grand time, riding the train and staying in a fancy hotel," Phillips said of her adventure, which all began with the $2.98 bathing suit from Schulman's Department Store.

Share your favorite Schulman's story this Friday or Saturday, Feb. 28 and March 1, between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the former Schulman's location.

Back to Archive: 02/27/03.