Frank Schreiner
American water polo player (1879–1937)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Frank" Schreiner (March 24, 1879 – July 6, 1937) was an American water polo player.[1] He competed in the men's tournament at the 1904 Summer Olympics, and was part of the team that won the bronze medal.[2][3] Olympedia lists his career as a Chicago grain merchant, but this may be in error.[3]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Francis Louis Schreiner |
| Born | March 24, 1897 St. Louis, Missouri, United States |
| Died | July 6, 1937 (aged 40) Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Swimming, Water polo |
| Club | Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) |
| Coached by | Alex Meffert (MAC) |
Schreiner was born March 24, 1897 in St. Louis Missouri, to father Jacob Schreiner, and was one of four siblings. He competed in both swimming and water polo for the Missouri Athletic Club.[3][4]
1904 Olympic bronze
At the 1904 St. Louis Olympics, Schreiner was a member of the Missouri Athletic Club water polo team that won the bronze medal in the event, with the team from the New York Athletic Club taking the Gold and the team from the Chicago Athletic Club taking the silver. In addition to Schreiner, the Missouri Club water polo team consisted of Gwynne Evans, Augustus Goessling, John Myers, Bill Orthwein, Amedee Reyburn, and Manfred Toeppen. The Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) team went scoreless 5-0 in their match against the New York Athletic Club, though only three teams competed, giving the MAC the bronze medal.[3][5]
The 1904 competition in water polo was part of the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, and was held at the Life Saving Exhibition Lake on September 5-6. Only American teams competed in the water polo tournament. The 1904 U.S. Olympic water polo team, consisting of players from the New York Athletic Club that won the gold medal consisted of David Bratton, George Van Cleaf, Leo Goodwin, Louis Handley, Joe Ruddy, and James Steen.[6] The lake used for the life saving exhibition and water polo tournament was part of the agricultural exhibit, and some of the cattle from the agricultural exhibit walked into the lake. Although swimming and water polo were held in a different part of the lake, within a year of the competition, four of the water polo competitors were the fatal victims of typhus.[3]
In 1906, Schreiner completed a five mile race representing the Missouri Athletic Club from the Mound City Rowing Club on Madison Street to the Cherokee Rowing club on Cherokee Street.[7] By 1906, the swimming instructor at the Missouri Athletic Club was Alex Meffert.[8]
In professional life after his swimming career, Schreiner worked as a grain merchant according to his entry in Olympedia, serving on the Chicago Board of Trade beginning in 1908. However, there are no other sources confirming that the water polo player and the Director of the Chicago Board of trade were the same individual.[3]
Francis L. Schreiner died of pneumonia at the Illinois Central Hospital on July 6, 1937 in Chicago, Illinois. Olympedia lists the 1904 Olympic water polo player's career as a grain merchant, but no other sources confirm that he served as a member of the Chicago Board of Trade, beginning in 1908, and later ascended to the role of Director by election. For Francis Louis Schreiner, the Chicago grain merchant, services were held on the afternoon of July 9th at his place of residence at the Plaisance Hotel on 60th Street in Chicago. Francis Louis Schreiner was buried at St. Mary Cemetery, and was survived by his wife Genevieve Whitlock Schreiner of New York, and a daughter Margaret, a Chicago resident.[9][10][4]
