Janet Heeman Marshall

Janet Heeman Marshall passed away peacefully on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025 at her home in Chagrin Falls Ohio. She was 103 years old.

Janet was born in Cleveland Ohio, August 20 1921. She was the daughter of Herbert Henry Heeman, (founder of the Lakewood Automobile company and the Heeman Manufacturing Co.) and Virginia Hathaway Heeman and was sister to Eleanore Heeman Havighurst, all deceased.

Janet was predeceased by her husband William McDaniel Marshall in 1982 and her son Willam McDaniel Marshall Jr. in 2000.

She is survived by her sons: Richard H. Marshall (Laura), James H. Marshall and her daughter in law, Marybeth J. Marshall. She is also survived by six grandchildren: Daniel C. Marshall, Emily M. Mears (Michael), Madeline M. Boggs (Christopher), Margaret M. Philp (Bruce), Henry H. Marshall (Faye) and Chase A. Marshall (Lauren). She is also survived by 9 great-grandchildren.

Janet grew up in Westpark Ohio and attended Lakewood Primary School. She was a graduate of Hathaway Brown School in Shaker Hts., class of ’39, and Sullins College in Bristol Virginia where she was a Fine Arts major.

As a youngster she belonged to the 4H Club . She enjoyed the pleasures of her family’s farms in Medina and later a beautiful 150 acre farm in Wooster Ohio. She loved to ride her father’s horses and enjoyed playing golf and tennis at the Westwood Country Club.

After college Janet worked at the Wooster Rubber Company, the parent company of Rubbermaid, first as receptionist and later as executive secretary to the President and Founder James Caldwell. During World War II the company was dedicated to manufacturing many products to assist the war effort including the “May West Life Preserver”. She volunteered in the USO in Wooster OH and later Mineral Springs Texas along with her sister whose husband was in Army training there. After a brief time spent in New York City, she returned to Cleveland and worked in the Insurance Department at Pickands Mather.

In 1948 Janet married William McDaniel Marshall of Shaker Hts. Her husband had been with the US Merchant Marines during WWII as an Officer aboard US Liberty Ships, moving supplies and heavy cargo to South America, Europe and Russia. They were married at Fairmount Presbyterian Church. Soon thereafter she and her husband moved to Cincinnati Ohio. Her husband worked for National Acme and in the ten years they spent there they had three boys. William McD Marshall Jr. in 1950, Richard Heeman Marshall in 1951 and James Hathaway Marshall in 1956. Their first home was on Broadview drive. They were members of the Hyde Park Country Club.

She and her husband Bill returned to Cleveland in 1958 and bought a home on Paxton Road in Shaker Hts. Their boys attended Shaker Schools and all graduated from University School as 3rd generation attendees.

Janet was an active volunteer, PTA, Recreation League and White Elephant

She also spent more than 20 years managing the Marshall and Prescott Co., a family partnership that owned a number of office buildings with commercial space once owned and occupied by the Marshall Drug Co.

She was a dedicated lifelong genealogist and an active member of many patriotic societies, including the National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution, Moses Cleveland Chapter, where, for four years she served as Regent, The National Society of Colonial Dames of America, Colonial Dames XVII Century, and The Society of Daughters of Holland Dames. She served on the Genealogy Board of the Western Reserve Historical Society. She made herself readily available to others interested in becoming patriotic society members by helping them research their ancestry and by preparing documents and proofs. She represented the DAR as part of the welcoming ceremonies for naturalization of immigrants at the Court house in Cleveland, providing new citizens with Welcome Kits, American flags and lead them in the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 2004 The National Society of Colonial Dames of America, State of Ohio elected her to the “National Roll of Honor” for distinguished service. She is among a relatively small number to ever receive that honor going back to 1896.

After visiting the Allen Memorial Library in 1981 with her husband Bill to view his father George Gehring Marshall’s rare book collection on “Herbals”, she was asked to Chair what was known as “The Cleveland Herbal Project”, she did so in memory of her husband who passed in 1982 and George Gehring Marshall, his father, a pharmacist and former president of The Marshall Drug Co., The project was to more or less catalog his collection of herbals containing approximately 300 works including some of the rarest of botanical literature in medical history. 125 titles were printed before the year 1700. These books were written to describe the medicinal uses of plants. One of these books, the most prized, was printed in 1484. The result of the Chairmanship was the book, The Cleveland Herbal Botanical, and Horticulture Collection, a descriptive bibliography of pre 1830 works from libraries of the Holden Arboretum, The Cleveland Botanical Gardens and the Cleveland Medical Library. That was then followed by the publishing of another book, “Cleveland’s Treasurers from the World of Botanical literature which was more of a “coffee table book” and without the very technical information contained in the bibliographic version. Both books were compiled by Stanley Johnson.

Janet spent much of her time in her library surrounded by her books and periodicals, corresponding with friends and family. She was an early adopter of the computer, learning MS-DOS and later programs to manage finances and to conduct her ever ongoing work in genealogy. She loved to read and never not had at least one book going at a time.

She had an uncountable number of interests over the years which kept her engaged in life including travel, art, collecting antiques, gardening. She was an American History buff.

She loved to cook. She enjoyed playing golf and even took to horseback riding, again well into in her 70’s, riding her horse on the trails all throughout the Chagrin Valley and along the bridle paths in the Cleveland Metroparks. Janet was a long time member of the Intown Club. She loved music and went to see the Cleveland Orchestra at Severance Center every Friday morning for their matinee performances, seated in her box and in the best seat in the house. She was a past member of The Cleveland Art Museum, The Natural History Museum, the Holden Arboretum and Cleveland Botanical Gardens.

In the summer Janet went to her home in Christmas Cove Maine, spending time with her family and lifelong friends. She enjoyed a picturesque home on the coast, with a sweeping view looking out over the ocean and surrounded by sweet cottage gardens. Being there rejuvenated her. It was the place she most wanted to be.

Everyone knew her as being a most wonderful loving, generous and caring person. Capable. She was fun to be with and had a wonderful sense of humor. She could laugh and giggle at herself and could find great joy in the simplest of things. A wonderful mother, wife, grandparent, great grandparent, aunt, daughter, sister and friend…She will be remembered for her kindness, warmth, genuine self and her spirit, her steadfast determination, non aging demeanor and health, her adventurous nature, a renaissance woman…a conservative, a patriot. And always a lady.

In lieu of flowers contributions can be made in memory of Janet H. Marshall to Hathaway Brown School, 19600 North Park Blvd., Shaker Heights, OH 44122 or Hospice of the Western Reserve, 17876 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland, OH 44110.

A private family service was held,