Introduced Version
House Concurrent Resolution 52 History
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HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 52
(By Delegates Walker, Iaquinta, Perry, Boggs and Fleischauer)
Requesting the Division of Highways to name a specific stretch of
road on WV Route 16 in Calhoun County, West Virginia,
specifically, that stretch of road beginning at the county
line of Clay and Calhoun counties and continuing to the
junction of WV Route 16 and US Route 33, the "Richardson
Brothers' Memorial Highway, United States Army, World War II".
Whereas, Jack Lewis Richardson and Barbara Ellen (Fields)
Richardson of Calhoun County, West Virginia, gave birth to four
boys between the years 1914 and 1924, known collectively as the
"Richardson Brothers"; and
Whereas, All of the Richardson Brothers were born and raised in
the hills of Calhoun County and attended Metheny Ridge Elementary;
and
Whereas, All of the Richardson Brothers left their rural
Calhoun County to join the United States Army in order to protect
the freedoms of our nation and the world in World War II; and
Whereas, The oldest of the brothers, Jack Lacy Richardson, born
on February 23, 1914, was inducted into the United States Army on
December 5, 1942, and served until the date of his honorable discharge on November 20, 1945, reenlisting on November 21, 1945
and, again, honorably discharged, as a private first class, on
February 19, 1946; and
Whereas, When on a tour of duty in Germany, Jack Lacy
Richardson was missing in action for 183 days, receiving a medal
for this in addition to a Victory Ribbon for his military service;
and
Whereas, At the time of his discharge from the United States
Army, Jack Lacey Richardson returned to West Virginia, settling in
Glen, Clay County, working as a construction worker, marrying and
fathering three children, one son and two daughters; and
Whereas, Jack Lacey Richardson died on April 5, 1990, at the
Veteran's Hospital in Beckley, West Virginia, and is buried at
Hoover Cemetery in Braxton County, West Virginia; and
Whereas, The next eldest Richardson brother, Asa R. Richardson,
was born on April 21, 1919, entered the United States Army on June
17, 1941, and served his country as a private first class until the
date of his honorable discharge of October 6, 1945; and
Whereas, While serving in the United States Army, Asa R.
Richardson was a scout paratrooper, a combat infantryman and a
rifle expert, serving in campaigns in the southern Philippines and
in New Guinea; and
Whereas, Asa R. Richardson received several awards and
decorations including the Asiatic-Pacific Theater Ribbon with two Bronze Stars, the Bronze Arrowhead, the American Defense Service
Medal, the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with Bronze Star and, not
least of all, the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster; and
Whereas, Following his honorable discharge from the United
States Army, Asa R. Richardson returned to Calhoun County, West
Virginia, and then to Norton, Virginia; and
Whereas, Asa R. Richardson was employed in the timber industry,
married and fathered six children, four boys and two girls; and
Whereas, Asa R. Richardson died in 1963 and is buried in Stone
Gap Military Cemetery in Virginia; and
Whereas, The next born Richardson Brother was Bill W.
Richardson, born in 1922 in Calhoun County, West Virginia, and
entering the United States Army on October 6, 1942; and
Whereas, Bill W. Richardson is the only Richardson brother who
did not return from the war, dying in action on May 14, 1943, in
the North African Area; and
Whereas, Bill W. Richardson, a private, was awarded the Purple
Heart for Military Merit and for Wounds Received in Action; and
Whereas, The youngest of the Richardson Brothers was Thomas
Junior Richardson, born on September 12, 1924, in Calhoun County;
and
Whereas, Thomas Junior Richardson was inducted into the United
States Army on December 5, 1942, receiving an honorable discharge,
as a private, on June 27, 1945; and
Whereas, While in the United States Army, Thomas Junior
Richardson served in campaigns in Normandy, Northern France and
Rhineland; and
Whereas, Thomas Junior Richardson was awarded the Purple Heart
and the European African Eastern Theater Medal; and
Whereas, Following his honorable discharge from the United
States Army, Thomas Junior Richardson returned to West Virginia,
residing at Dille in Clay County, working in the coal mines,
marrying and having four children, two sons, one stepson and one
stepdaughter; and
Whereas, The last of the Richardson Brothers, Thomas Junior
Richardson passed away in the year 2006; and
Whereas, The Richardson Brothers should be acknowledged and
honored by their home state for all coming forward, out of the safe
hills of Calhoun County at the time of the nation's and the world's
need, prepared to sacrifice their life in order to protect the
freedoms of the nation and the world; and
Whereas, Of the four, only three returned from the war,
providing an even greater justification for honoring these brave
and selfless Richardson men; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Division of Highways is hereby requested to name that
stretch of road beginning at the county line of Clay and Calhoun
counties and continuing to the junction of WV Route 16 and US Route 33, the "Richardson Brothers' Memorial Highway, United States Army,
WWII"; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Division of Highways is hereby
requested to cause to have made two signs that state, in bold and
prominent lettering, the "Richardson Brothers' Memorial Highway,
United States Army, WWII", and to erect these signs on either end
of the specific stretch of road at locations most easily read by
vehicular traffic on WV Route 16; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates
forward a certified copy of this resolution to the Secretary of the
Department of Transportation and to the Richardson Brothers'
nephew, Mr. John Morris of Chloe, West Virginia.