Eschenbrenner attended Manhattan College and NYU where she studied English Literature.

Her early career was in publishing and teaching English to foreign students but she always wanted to

work in the field of history. In 1999 she volunteered as an assistant to the archivist at what was then

called The DeWitt Historical Society. In 2001 she became the Director of Archives and Research

Services at what we now call The History Center of Tompkins County.