Academy of Distinguished Alumni
Stuart Shumate, Academy of Distinguished Alumni Award 2003
B.S. 1936
President (retired), Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac Railroad

Stuart Shumate was one of the key planners for the development of Crystal City-an expanse of business, residential and government buildings on the Virginia side of the nation's capital. At the time, Mr. Shumate was the president of the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac Railroad (RF&P) and his company owned the valuable property that became Crystal City.



The purchase of northern Virginia land by RF&P was not unusual. Railroad companies routinely bought property along their lines in order to use the land to develop industries that would, in turn, use railways to transport freight. Mr. Shumate realized that the future site of Crystal City was "way too valuable" for industrial use. Instead, he worked with Charles A. Smith, a developer, to design prime business and government buildings with vertical architecture that maximized the use of space. Mr. Shumate cites this venture as the largest he undertook during his career.



Born in 1915, Mr. Shumate lived through the Great Depression as a teenager. He recalls that there were few employment opportunities when he graduated from Virginia Tech in 1936, but he attracted the interest of the Pennsylvania Railroad. After the company met with a number of applicants from Tech's College of Engineering, they asked Mr. Shumate to come to Philadelphia for a second interview and offered him his first position.



The young engineer quickly became fascinated by the railroad industry and says that he "loved every minute of the work." One of his early responsibilities was to ensure the safety and reliability of the railroad's infrastructure for trains traveling at the then high speeds of 70 to 80 miles per hour.



He remembers 1943 as a pivotal year. He met and married "a pretty girl named Mary from West Virginia, and every year since the marriage has only gotten better." Shortly after his wedding day he was shipped overseas as a member of the U.S. Army Transportation Corps. The Army used his talents to operate a railroad in Europe, and when he returned to his Pennsylvania Railroad job after the war, he brought with him a Bronze Star and retired from military service with the rank of Colonel.



Moving to the operations side of the railroad business, Mr. Shumate began his professional ascent. One day he received a telephone call from a former Virginia Tech civil engineering classmate, Tom Rice. In 1946, Mr. Rice recruited his friend to the RF&P Railroad. In 1961 Mr. Shumate became President of RF&P and remained in this position for two decades. Mr. Rice went on to become the CEO of CSX Corporation. After Mr. Shumate's retirement, CSX acquired RF&P.



Mr. Shumate was quite active in his community while he was RF&P President. In this position, he also was President and Director, simultaneously, of the Richmond Land Corporation, and he served as Chair of the Potomac Yard Board of Managers from 1955 until 1981. He was a director of the A.H. Robins Co. from 1966 until 1986, a role that provided him with "an exciting exposure to a different type of industry." He was also a director of the First and Merchants National Bank (1958-68 and 1974-81) and the Fruit Growers Express Company (1960-78).



He served for eight years on the Board of Visitors of Virginia Commonwealth University and was a member of the study group that recommended the merging of the Medical College of Virginia with the Richmond Professional Institute.



Mr. Shumate has served on five Chambers of Commerce-the U.S., Virginia, Alexandria, Fredericksburg and Metro Richmond. He was also a member of the Traffic Clubs of Richmond, Pittsburgh, and New York.



Stuart and his wife, an artist who works with water colors, have two children, John and Susan, and two grandsons.