Captain James Boucher Shane was born in Kentucky in 1840. He served with distinction in the 16th Kentucky Infantry during the Civil War, and after the war was promoted to the rank of Captain. After the war, he moved his young family to Abilene, Kansas, where he tried a number of business ventures, including planting a crop of wheat on 2500 acres. This venture was sponsored by the railroad, and was one of the first attempts to farm wheat exclusively. He came to Lawrence, Kansas, in 1878. He operated a photography business out of a railroad car, and owned several studios on Massachusetts Street, eventually building his own home and studio at 615 Massachusetts in 1885. In May of 1902 he was convicted of murder and was sent to Lansing Prison. He was paroled in 1912, and was pardoned in December of 1913. Upon his incarceration, his daughter, Juno Belle Shane, took over the business. She was a graduate of the Illinois College of Photography. After her marriage in circa 1907, her husband, Herbert Thompson, joined her in the business. Thompson was a veteran and, after he got out of the army, he went back to school and graduated from the University of Kansas in 1910. Thompson died in 1929, and again Juno Belle operated the business alone until her death in 1953.
From the guide to the Shane-Thompson papers, 1864-1944, (University of Kansas Kenneth Spencer Research Library Kansas Collection)
