CHARLES ERNEST SCHMIDT

To most Ocean Springs residents the name of Dr. Michael DeBakey doesn't mean anything. To C.E. Schmidt, however, the name brings back memories of his young mechanical engineering days in New Orleans, memories that have become stronger since Dr. DeBakey was recently in the international limelight.

The skilled heart and vascular surgeon living in Houston, Texas has been the operating physician on the deposed Shah of Iran. His name was in the news a few weeks ago when he along with five assistants, arrived in Panama City to operate on the Shah, only to be barred from doing it because the Shah's health at that time did not permit it. The Shah shortly after that, flew to Cairo, Egypt, where Dr. DeBakey joined him and successfully removed his diseased spleen.

In Schmidt's extensive collection of memorabilia, he has two large pages dealing with his connection to Dr. DeBakey. The famed physician, a native of Lake Charles, La., attended Tulane University in New Orleans and lived at the same residential hall as Schmidt did. They became good friends, having lively discussions on philosophy. Schmidt recalled DeBakey being a good student and ambitious, though not a class leader.

Schmidt graduated from Tulane in 1928 and DeBakey went into medical school. The Ocean Springs native's first job was with the U.S. Corps of Engineers, First New Orleans District, where he assisted in preparing specifications, making necessary drawings and inspecting work in shipyards, machine shops, welding shops and foundries. Schmidt described tat job as a "broad experience in the mechanical field."

In 1934, Dr. DeBakey, doing his graduate work in surgery at Tulane and Charity Hospitals, contacted Schmidt and asked that the engineer help him develop a pump for transfusion of Blood. Schmidt wrote "blood transfusions at that time were rather dramatic: the donor lay alongside and his blood flowed through a small tube into the veins of the patient. There was need for better control of the flow. I designed a pump and had a model made for testing. It proved satisfactory."

He wrote, "we began to receive small royalties on it, but before it was well accepted, a still better procedure was developed for blood transfusions. It was the blood bank: refrigerated blood was given to patients simply by gravity flow and our blood pump soon became obsolete." During its short tenure, not once did Schmidt see his blood pump being used on a patient.

DeBakey eventually located in the young city of Houston in Texas and he went on to become internationally know for his skill. One of his most famous patients, prior to the Shah of Iran, was the English Duke of Windsor, the man who left the throne of England for "the woman I love." The Duke came to Houston to undergo surgery by Dr. Debakey.

Schmidt returned to his native town in 1937 where he established a boat and bait business for the active shrimping industry in the area. He later went into the seafood restaurant business until he was forced to sell his land to the state highway department. The four lane Ocean Springs Bilox Bridge is located where his business used to be. He served as an alderman from 1947-48 and he was mayor of Ocean Springs from 1961-1965.

Over the years, Schmidt continued experimenting with his inventing ideas and talents which paid off in a timely fashion because, when he was forced to sell his land to the highway department, one of his inventions paid off. He now manufactures the Hydrolevel, a level used for buildings trades, that is assembled in Ocean Springs. The level has been selling since 1951 and the current model is the third revision from his original design. He has sold more than 50,000 all over the U.S. in the last 25 years.

Schmidt is also a well known Ocean Springs historian, having written "Ocean Springs French Beachead." It is through his sense of history that he keeps such excellent records of his recollections and one of them he has shared is his valuable friendship with Dr. DeBakey.

SATURDAY, JAN. 16, 1988

Ex-Ocean Springs mayor, inventor and historian dies

Charles Ernest Schmidt, mayor of Ocean Springs from 1961-65, died Thursday in Ocean Springs. He was 83.
Mr. Schmidt, a lifelong resident of Ocean Springs, was a noted historian and inventor. He attended Tulane University, where he received a degree in mechanical engineering, and, in 1934, he designed a blood pump for his friend and roommate, Texas heart surgeon Dr. Michael DeBakey. The pump was later used as a heart and lung pump.
In 1937, Mr. Schmidt opened the Bay Bridge Tavern, a seafood restaurant on the beach in Ocean Springs. He ran the restaurant until he was called to the armed forces and served as lieutenant in the Navy during World War II. After he returned, the restaurant was sold to the state of Mississippi as land for the construction of the Biloxi-Ocean Springs Bridge.
Mr. Schmidt invented the hydrolevel in 1951, a water level used in the building trades. He opened the Hydrolevel Company, from which he retired in 1982.
Affectionately known as "Uncle Ernie," Mr. Schmidt served as alderman-at-large for Ocean Springs from 1947-48. He wrote many of the zoning ordinances that are now used by the city.
As a local historian and authority on Ocean Springs, Schmidt wrote the book "Ocean Springs French Beachhead," a history of the city he loved so much.
Mr. Schmidt was a member of St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Ocean Springs and the Knights' of Columbus. He is survived by a brother, Dr. Harry Schmidt Sr. of Biloxi. Visitation will be held Sunday night from 6 until 9 at Bradford O'Keefe Funeral Home in Ocean Springs, with recitation of the rosary at 7:30. Mass will be celebrated Monday at 10:30 a.m. at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, followed by burial in Evergreen Cemetery, Ocean Springs.