Percival L. Shangraw

Percival L. Shangraw
Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office 1972–1974
Preceded by	James Stuart Holden
Succeeded by	Albert W. Barney Jr.
Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office 1958–1972
Preceded by	Walter H. Cleary
Succeeded by	Rudolph J. Daley
Chief Judge of the Vermont Superior Court
In office 1956–1958
Preceded by	James Stuart Holden
Succeeded by	Albert W. Barney Jr.
Judge of the Vermont Superior Court
In office 1951–1958
Preceded by	Raymond L. Miles
Succeeded by	Leonard W. Morrison
Member of the Vermont Senate
In office January 1951 – February 1951 Serving with Ernest E. Perley
Preceded by	Simon J. Godfrey, E. Frank Branon
Succeeded by	Benjamin W. Fisher
Constituency	Franklin County
Judge of the Franklin County, Vermont Municipal Court
In office 1935–1947
Preceded by	Albert W. Butler
Succeeded by	Percy C. Warner
Personal details
Born	(1897-08-06)August 6, 1897 Montgomery, Vermont, U.S.
Died	December 18, 1988(1988-12-18) (aged 91) St. Albans, Vermont, U.S.
Resting place	Hillside Cemetery, Richford, Vermont, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Ruth Ardell Marvin (m. 1922)
Children	2
Education	Albany Law School
Occupation	Attorney

Percival L. Shangraw (August 6, 1897 – December 18, 1988) was a Vermont attorney and judge. He is notable for his service as an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1958 to 1972, and chief justice from 1972 until 1974.

Early life

Percival Lee Shangraw was born in Montgomery, Vermont on August 6, 1897, the son of Edward J. and Lillian (Murray) Shangraw. He was raised and educated in Richford, and graduated from Richford High School in 1916.

Career

Military service

Shangraw joined the Vermont National Guard's 1st Infantry Regiment shortly before World War I. This unit was federalized as the 57th Pioneer Infantry Regiment, and completed its training at Camp Greene, North Carolina and Camp Wadsworth, South Carolina, and Shangraw advanced through the ranks to become sergeant major of his battalion. Upon arrival in France, the 57th Pioneer Infantry was designated to provide replacement troops for the 83rd Division, and Shangraw completed officer training and received a second lieutenant's commission in early September 1918. Shangraw was promoted to first lieutenant later that month, and was one of a small number of soldiers designated to reconstitute the regiment and prepare it for transfer to the front lines. The war ended before their training was complete, and Shangraw was with the regiment when it was discharged at Camp Devens, Massachusetts in August 1919.

During World War II, Shangraw was commissioned as a captain in the Vermont State Guard, which performed home guard duties while the Vermont National Guard served overseas. He commanded Company I, 3rd Battalion, which was based in St. Albans, and he was promoted to major before the end of the war.

Start of legal career

After his World War I service, Shangraw attended Albany Law School, from which he received his LL.B. degree in 1923. From 1923 to 1925, Shangraw was secretary for the Vermont Public Service Commission. He was admitted to the bar in 1925, and established a practice with offices in St. Albans and Richford. He was also a longtime vice president and director of the Richford Savings Bank. A Republican, from 1935 to 1947 he served as judge of the Franklin County municipal court.

In 1950, Shangraw was a successful candidate for the Vermont Senate. He served during the session of 1951, and resigned upon winning a Vermont General Assembly election for appointment as a judge of the Vermont Superior Court. He served until 1958, and advanced by seniority to become the chief judge.

Vermont Supreme Court

In 1958, Chief Justice Olin M. Jeffords retired from the Vermont Supreme Court. Associate Justice Walter H. Cleary was promoted to Chief Justice, and Shangraw was appointed to succeed Cleary, in keeping with the state's tradition of promoting the chief judge of the superior court to the supreme court as vacancies arose.

In 1972, Shangraw was promoted to chief justice, succeeding James Stuart Holden, who had been appointed to a federal judgeship. He served as chief justice until retiring in 1974, and was succeeded by Albert W. Barney Jr.

Personal life, death, and legacy

In 1922, Shangraw married Ruth Ardell Marvin of Richford. They were the parents of two children, Richard and Norma Jean.

In retirement, Shangraw continued to reside in St. Albans, and continued to hear cases occasionally as a specially assigned judge in Vermont's courts until the mid-1980s. He died in St. Albans on December 18, 1988, and was buried at Hillside Cemetery in Richford.

In October 2014, the courthouse in St. Albans was named for Shangraw. A grandson and Franklin County's assistant judges took part in a ceremony which included the unveiling of a plaque bearing his name.

Sources

Newspapers

• "High School Class Day Exercises". Burlington Free Press. Burlington, VT. June 9, 1916 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Richford: The Village News". Burlington Free Press. Burlington, VT. March 5, 1918 – via Newspapers.com.
• "St. Albans Guard Members Attend School at Barton". Burlington Free Press. Burlington, VT. February 27, 1945 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Justice Cleary Appointed Chief Justice of Vermont". Bennington Banner. Bennington, VT. Associated Press. February 28, 1958 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Shangraw is State's New Chief Justice". Bennington Banner. Bennington, VT. United Press International. January 22, 1972 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Chief Justice to Step Down". Burlington Free Press. Burlington, VT. Free Press Morning Bureau. January 5, 1974 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Obituary, Percival Lee Shangraw". Burlington Free Press. Burlington, VT. December 19, 1988 – via Newspapers.com.
• Monroe, Michelle (October 30, 2014). "County's courthouse named for Shangraw: Former chief justice resided in St. Albans". St. Albans Messenger. St. Albans, VT.

Internet

• Rounds, Henry Heath (Town Clerk, Richford, VT) (September 16, 1922). "Vermont Marriage Records, 1909-2008, Entry for Percival Lee Shangraw and Ruth Ardell Marvin". Ancestry.com. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com, LLC. Retrieved February 9, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

Books

• Johnson, Herbert T. (1927). Roster of Vermont Men and Women in the World War. Rutland, VT: The Tuttle Company, Marble City Press – via Ancestry.com.

External links

• "Justices of the Supreme Court: 1778 – Present" (PDF). Office of the Vermont Secretary of State. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
• Percival L. Shangraw at Find a Grave
• Montgomery Historical Society Board of Directors. "Biography, Percival Lee "Percy" Shangraw" (PDF). montgomeryhistoricalsociety.org/. Montgomery, VT: Montgomery Historical Society. Retrieved February 9, 2018.