SENATE RESOLUTION 57

(By Senators Ashley, Stollings, Kessler and Plymale)

[Introduced March 2, 2016]

Recognizing Sistersville Tank Works for their dedication and commitment to building a successful business in West Virginia.

Whereas, Sistersville Tank Works, Inc., was founded in 1894, in Sistersville, West Virginia; and

Whereas, Sistersville Tank Works played an important role in the development of the oil and gas industry in the Ohio Valley, manufacturing oil field boilers, vessels and large storage tanks; and

Whereas, In 1923, Sistersville Tank Works received authorization to manufacture boilers with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers code stamp; and

Whereas, In 1942, to support the war effort, the company built landing craft and military ordnance; and

Whereas, In 1984, two Sistersville Tank Works employees, Janet Wells and her daughter, Darlene Morgan, mortgaged the family farm to buy the company; and

Whereas, With a new emphasis on improved quality of work, expansion of markets served and improved customer service, revenues improved six-fold within a few years and employment rose from seven to fifty workers; and

Whereas, In 1988, Janet Wells was named the U. S. Small Business Person of the Year and was featured in TIME Magazine; and

Whereas, Today, Sistersville Tank Works builds ASME custom pressure vessels, specialized industrial storage tanks, industrial heat exchangers and reactors used by energy companies, chemical manufacturers, utilities, refineries and oil and gas industries worldwide; and

Whereas, In 2015, Sistersville Tank Works dedicated its new production facility just north of Parkersburg, more than doubling its production space, employing 30 to 40 additional employees and capable of building multiple tanks in excess of one hundred feet long simultaneously, and shipping them by barge, rail and highway; and

Whereas, Sistersville Tank Works is a West Virginia and American success story, one that all West Virginians should be proud of; therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate:

That the Senate hereby recognizes Sistersville Tank Works for their dedication and commitment to building a successful business in West Virginia; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to Sistersville Tank Works, Inc.