Mary Louise Sheldon

December 11, 1919 - March 1, 2021

Mary Louise Sheldon Mary Louise Sheldon, age 101, of Dover Delaware passed away peacefully at her home on March 1, 2021. She was born in December of 1919 in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania to Frank G. Watson and Kathryn Kirk Burr Watson, eldest of two children. She grew up in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania where she attended Conshohocken High School, Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania and Moore College of Art in Philadelphia. After college, she worked in Philadelphia as a high fashion dress designer, making frequent trips to New York for inspiration for her designs. She moved to Lansdowne in 1950 with her husband where she raised her family. She is pre-deceased by her husband of 50 years, Albert E. Sheldon, her parents and her brother, Richard Watson. She is survived by her four children, Donald K. Sheldon of Sewell, New Jersey, Barbara S. Wood of Saint Davids, Pennsylvania, Linda L. Shaver of La Quinta, California, and Richard B. Sheldon of Dover, Delaware, seven grandchildren, Cathy Sheldon, Matthew Sheldon, Michael Sheldon, James Wood, Richard Wood, Erica Shaver and Jessica Shaver, and by four great grandchildren. Mary Louise remained active until the last few years of her life, driving her car around Dover, attending church, going to the Dover Senior Center, playing bridge and mahjong, and attending garden club meetings. She even made a trip to California to visit her daughter when she was 99 years of age. She remained sharp of mind to the end, loved watching Jeopardy and would have made a very good contestant. Mary Louise is a descendent of the British naval captain James Cooke, covered bridge builder Theodore Burr, for whom the Theodore Burr Covered Bridge Society of Pennsylvania is named, third vice president of the United States Aaron Burr and Mary Kirk who helped defend Fort Freeland, Pennsylvania in the fall of 1778 and was nominated by the Northumberland County Historical Society as one of Pennsylvania’s Notable Women. Funeral Services will be held on Wednesday, March 10, 2021 at 10:00 am at the Presbyterian Church of Dover, Delaware. The burial will be held March 10, 2021 at 2:00 pm at George Washington Memorial Park in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania with reception to follow at the Marriott in Conshohocken.  In consideration of protecting the family and friends health, public health guidelines enacted for the prevention of the spread of covid-19 virus, limitations on gatherings, physical distancing, use of hand sanitation and masks are in place.