History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century/4/John Shane
JOHN SHANE was born in Jefferson County, Ohio, on the 26th of May, 1822, and was educated at Jefferson College. He studied law with Edwin M. Stanton, Lincoln's great Secretary of War and was admitted to the bar in 1848, beginning practice at Steubenville. In 1855, he removed to Iowa, locating at Vinton where he engaged in the practice of law. He was a delegate to the State Convention which organized the Republican party at Iowa City in 1856. He entered the military service as captain of Company G, Thirteenth Infantry in 1861, in October was promoted to major and was in the Battle of Shiloh. Soon after he became lieutenant-colonel and in March, 1863, was promoted to colonel of the regiment. He served in this position with distinction until November, 1864, when the term of enlistment expired. In 1871 Colonel Shane was elected on the Republican ticket to the State Senate, serving four years. In 1876 he was appointed judge of the Eighth Judicial District and was elected in 1878 for a full term but was stricken with paralysis before the expiration and resigned. He died on the 18th of September, 1899.