Walter W. Shaw

Who was Walter W. Shaw?

Walter White Shaw was an American football player and coach, attorney and businessman. He played at the halfback position for Fielding H. Yost's renowned 1901 "Point-a-Minute" football team. He later worked as an attorney, judge and businessman in Oklahoma and Louisiana.

Shaw was born in Owego, New York in 1880, the son of Charles E. and Ida M. Shaw. His father gained prominence as a buckwheat miller, wholesale grocer, coal mine operator and banker. In 1889, the Shaw family moved to Lincoln, Nebraska where they remained for eight years. In 1897, the family moved to Denver, Colorado. The younger Shaw was educated in the schools of Lincoln, Denver, and Kansas City, Missouri. He enrolled at the University of Michigan where he was a member of the law school's Class of 1902. He played for the Michigan Wolverines football team as a quarterback and halfback from 1899 to 1901. He began the 1901 season as a starting halfback for Michigan in the team's first year under head coach Fielding H. Yost. In the third and fourth games of the 1901 season against Indiana and Northwestern, Willie Heston got the start at left halfback, and Shaw substituted for Heston late in the games.