SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 10
(By Senators Caldwell, Chafin, Fanning, White, Sharpe, Ross and
Hunter)
Requesting the Division of Highways rename the East River Mountain
tunnel the "H. Edward Steele Memorial Tunnel".
Whereas, H. Edward "Eddie" Steele was born in the small
community of Steelesburg, Virginia, on August 24, 1906. During his
junior year of 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; and
Whereas, In 1931, he returned to Bluefield as city/county
editor of the Bluefield Daily Telegraph where he worked six years
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 where he was instrumental in
coordinating the activities of a diverse group of good roads advocates from the Carolinas into the state of Ohio. The
Association was successful in gaining federal support for the
routing of Interstate 77 from Cleveland, Ohio, to Columbia, South
Carolina. 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 for this project should not go
unnoticed; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the
Legislature hereby requests the Division of Highways
rename the East River Mountain tunnel the "H. Edward Steele
Memorial Tunnel"; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the Senate is hereby
directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the Secretary of
the Department of Transportation and the family of the late H.
Edward Steele.
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