| The award is conferred on individuals whose
philanthropic and civic activities have changed the face of UM. |
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Prestigious
griz award given
to the late James B. Castles
UM presented one of its highest honors, the Order of the Grizzly,
posthumously to attorney and businessman James B. Castles during a spring ceremony in
Portland, Ore. The Order of the Grizzly was created in 1965 to recognize Montanans of
highest distinction. The award is conferred on individuals whose philanthropic and civic
activities have changed the face of UM. Castles is the first person to be inducted into
the Order of the Grizzly in more than 10 years.
A Missoula native who also spent much of his youth in Superior, Castles made his mark
in the Portland area, where he was associated with Tektronix, an electronic-instruments
firm, and the M.J. Murdock Trust, one of the largest private foundations in the Northwest.
He died in Portland in 1995.
"I think it most appropriate for the late Jim Castles to become the first inductee
to the Order of the Grizzly for the new millennium," UM President George Dennison
said. "Jim had such a distinguished career, and he gave generously of his time and
resources to support the University, especially its schools of law and forestry."
Castles graduated from UM's law school in 1938. He then practiced law in Montana until
World War II, when he served in the U.S. Coast Guard. After leaving the military he
resumed his law practice in Portland. There he incorporated Tektronix Inc. on behalf of
his Coast Guard buddy, Jack Murdock, and Howard Vollum.
The firm eventually grew to become the world's largest manufacturer of oscilloscopes
and other electronic instruments. From 1946 to 1961 he was the firm's outside legal
counsel. He then joined the company full time as general counsel and corporate secretary.
He served on the Tektronix board of directors from 1953 to 1988.
Castles was one of three original trustees of the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, formed
in 1975 through the will of Jack Murdock. The trust has awarded grants in excess of $296
million, including ones to UM for the School of Pharmacy and Allied Health Sciences,
Broadcast Media Center, Division of Biological Sciences, the Motor Control Lab and the
Castles Center at Lubrecht Experimental Forest.
Personally, Castles also was a generous supporter of the University. His gifts resulted
in seminar rooms in the School of Law, as well as that school's Justice Wesley Castles and
James B. Castles Professional Development Center. He also helped create the Castles
Forestry Center, the law school's Diamond Jubilee Endowment, scholarships for law and
forestry students, and one of the first Presidential Leadership Scholarships. He was a
member of the UM Foundation Board of Trustees from 1964 to 1977.
The Order of the Grizzly was established in the 1960s by former UM President Robert
Johns and the UM Foundation. The honor has since been bestowed on 25 outstanding
individuals who have Montana connections but aren't necessarily UM graduates. The intent
of the award is to keep the recipients close to Montana and its flagship University. The
recipients each receive an Order of the Grizzly insignia -- a miniature casting of a
grizzly sculptured by UM art Professor Emeritus Rudy Autio.
Other Order of the Grizzly members include William Allen, UM '22, chair of The Boeing
Co.; James Browning, UM '41, chief judge of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals; Carroll
O'Connor, UM '56, television actor, producer and writer; and Harold Urey, UM '17, winner
of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.
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