Herbert B. Shonk
{{Short description|American politician (1881–1930)}}
Herbert Bronson Shonk (October 28, 1881 – September 26, 1930) was an American lawyer, businessman and politician from New York.
Life
Shonk was born on October 28, 1881, in Plymouth, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, the son of Congressman George W. Shonk (1850–1900) and Ida Elizabeth (Klotz) Shonk (1856–1911). He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1903; and from Harvard Law School in 1906.[http://cdsun.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/cornell?a=d&d=CDS19300927.2.11# HERBERT SHONK DIES FOLLOWING OPERATION] in The Cornell Daily Sun on September 27, 1930 On June 20, 1917, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, and from January 13, 1918, to March 13, 1919, fought overseas in World War I.[http://collections.westchestergov.com/cdm/singleitem/collection/vetcards/id/6933/rec/43 His Veteran Card] He finished the war as a major and was awarded the Croix de Guerre. Afterwards he engaged in the oil business.
Shonk was elected to the New York State Assembly (Westchester Co., 2nd D.) in 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929 and 1930; and was Chairman of the Committee on Aviation from 1928 to 1930.[https://www.nytimes.com/1928/01/10/archives/assembly-creates-air-committee-shonk-named-its-chairman-introduces.html ASSEMBLY CREATES AIR COMMITTEE; Shonk Named Its Chairman] in the New York Times on January 10, 1928 (subscription required) He died on September 26, 1930, in White Plains Hospital in White Plains, New York, after an operation for appendicitis;[https://www.nytimes.com/1930/09/27/archives/major-shonk-dies-after-operation-had-been-assemblyman-from-second.html MAJOR SHONK DIES AFTER OPERATION] in the New York Times on September 27, 1930 (subscription required) and was buried at the St. James the Less Cemetery in Scarsdale.
In 1907, Shonk married Gertrude Knight (1885–1938), daughter of State Comptroller Erastus C. Knight (1857–1923). They had four children, including:[http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/h/u/s/Thomas-D-Husband/WEBSITE-0001/UHP-0354.html Shonk genealogy] at Family Tree Maker Herbert Bronson Shonk (1916–1943), who served as a bomber pilot in World War II and died when his airplane fell into the Pacific Ocean,[http://library.sps.edu/06archives/war/ww2/pdf/Shonk_Herbert_Bronson_Jr.pdf "Herbert Bronson Shonk, Jr."] in St. Paul's School archive [with portrait] and Peter Marne Shonk (1918–2013), who served as a fighter pilot in World War II and was stationed on the Navy aircraft carrier USS Enterprise in the South Pacific theater.
Sources
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{{succession box
| before = Walter W. Westall
| title = New York State Assembly
Westchester County, 2nd District
| years = 1923–1930
| after = Ralph A. Gamble
}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shonk, Herbert B}}
Category:People from Plymouth, Pennsylvania
Category:Politicians from Scarsdale, New York
Category:Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly
Category:Deaths from appendicitis
Category:Wesleyan University alumni
Category:Harvard Law School alumni
Category:20th-century members of the New York State Legislature