Peter C. Shannon

Who was Peter C. Shannon?

Peter C. Shannon was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. After practicing law for a time in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1852 Shannon ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the US House of Representatives, losing by five hundred votes to Whig David Ritchie. Shannon was then appointed president judge of the local district court in 1852 by Pennsylvania Governor William Bigler, but served for only a year, having been defeated for re-election in 1853. At the beginning of the Civil War Shannon became a Republican and was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, serving two terms, 1862 and 1863. He was commissioned Lieutenant Colonel in a regiment which he helped raise, but resigned to continue his political career. In 1862 he campaigned with Governor Andrew Curtin in his successful re-election bid, and in 1864 was part of Lincoln's re-election campaign in Pennsylvania.

After the Civil War Shannon continued his law practice until he was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Dakota Territory in 1873 by President Ulysses S. Grant.