HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 2
(By Delegates Frederick, Yeager, Kominar, Cann,
Long, Caruth and Staton)
[Introduced January 16, 2004; referred to the Committee on
Rules.]
Requesting
that East River Mountain Tunnel be renamed the "H.
Edward Steele Memorial Tunnel".
Whereas, H. Edward "Eddie" Steele was born in the small
Tazewell County Community of Steelesburg, Va. on August 24, 1906,
and during his junior year in high school in 1923, he became a
county correspondent for the Bluefield Daily Telegraph. Mr.
Steele served as a reporter/editor of several regional, national
and international newspapers including the Williamson Daily News
where he covered the West Virginia Mine Wars from 1925-1928. In
1931, he returned to Bluefield as city/county editor of the
Bluefield Daily Telegraph. Mr. Steele worked six years with the
newspaper before accepting a position as manager of the Greater
Bluefield Chamber of Commerce. In that position, he created the
City of Bluefield?s slogan, "Nature?s Air-conditioned City," and
developed the publicity stunt of serving free lemonade on days
that the temperature exceeds 90 degrees Fahrenheit; and
Whereas, In 1938, Mr. Steele became secretary of the Great
Lakes to Florida Highway Association.
While serving as secretary of the Great Lakes to Florida Highway Association, Mr. Steele was
instrumental in coordinating the activities of a diverse group of
good roads advocates from the Carolinas into the state of Ohio
and the association was successful in gaining federal support for
the routing of Interstate 77 that extends from Cleveland, Ohio to
Columbia, South Carolina. Initial plans for that I-77 called for
an eastern turn near the city of Princeton, West Virginia that
would have taken it around East River Mountain closer to a route
that would have bypassed Bluefield, West Virginia and surrounding
coalfield communities. Mr. Steele and members of the Association
thought that the present day routing of the highway would
ultimately open southern West Virginia and southwestern Virginia
to all the benefits normally associated with the arrival of a
modern interstate highway; and
Whereas, Mr. Steele and the Great Lakes to Florida Highway
Association - through great time, effort and personal expense -
convinced federal, Virginia and West Virginia highway officials
that the present routing of I-77 through East River Mountain
Tunnel and Big Walker Mountain Tunnel would bring the greatest
benefit to the people of Virginia and West Virginia. Mr. Steele
worked to support regional highway initiatives until his death on
June 27, 2003 and his work and efforts on this project should not
go unnoticed; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the
West Virginia Division of Highways
is hereby
requested to rename the East River Mountain Tunnel, the "H.
Edward Steele Memorial Tunnel"; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk forward a copy of this
Concurrent Resolution to the Commissioner of the
West Virginia
Division of Highways
and the family of H. Edward Steele.
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