Edward Royall Sheffield

Edward Royall Sheffield

Edward Royall Sheffield passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family, on Friday, November 5, 2010.

Ed was born November 17, 1922, in Crewe, Virginia. He was a graduate of Crewe High School and the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University.

Ed attended the Apprentice School of Newport News Shipbuilding until joining the Army Air Corp during World War II. He served in the Army Air Corp for the remainder of the war, and later with the National Guard 176th RCT, Blackstone, Virginia, retiring as 1st Lieutenant.

Ed went to work for the Bank of Crewe in 1946, beginning a banking career that spanned 40 years. He became the Executive Officer of the Bank of Crewe and served in that position until it was acquired by Virginia National Bank, now Bank of America, around 1966. Ed remained with Bank of America until retiring in 1985, serving the last 15 years as Regional Executive Officer for the Southwest Region of Virginia.

Ed served as deacon, elder, trustee and church school teacher at Presbyterian churches in Crewe, Charlottesville and Abington, Virginia. He was also active in the Chamber of Commerce in Crewe and in Abingdon. He was an avid photographer, and leaves for his family a treasured photographic collection dating back over 50 years.

Ed was predeceased by his parents, Frank W. and Eula H. Sheffield; a brother, Frank W. Sheffield Jr.; and sisters, Ann S. Hooper and Mary S. Gunn.

He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Sylvia Francis Sheffield of Crewe; three children, Susan S. Yowell and her husband, Stephen, of Crozet, Virginia, Nancy S. Peterson of Lafayette, Colorado, and Edward R. Sheffield Jr. and his wife, Winston, of West Point, Virginia; four grandchildren, Gordon Yowell and his wife, Melissa, of Hurt, Virginia, Lindsay Yowell of Charlottesville, Virginia, and Stuart and Sarah Sheffield of West Point, Virginia; and one brother, Ben Sheffield and his wife, Emily, of La Grange, Georgia.

A memorial service will be held 11 a.m. Tuesday, November 9, 2010, at Pryor Memorial Presbyterian Church, 115 East Tennessee Avenue, Crewe, Virginia.

The family will receive friends in the church fellowship hall following the services.

Memorial gifts may be made to Pryor Memorial Presbyterian Church, Crewe, Virginia.

The Jennings-McMillian Funeral Home of Crewe is assisting the family.


This obituary was originally published in the Daily Progress.