HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 111
(By Delegates Hatfield, Andes, Armstead, Brown, Guthrie,
Hunt, Martin, Paxton, Schoen, Skaff, Spencer and Wells)
Requesting the Division of Highways to name the bridge known as the
Dunbar Toll Bridge on County Route 25/47, 0.1 mile north of
the junction of U.S. Route 60 and crossing U.S. Route 60 and
the Great Kanawha River, near South Charleston, West Virginia,
otherwise identified as bridge number 20A337, as the "John H.
Reed, Jr. Memorial Bridge".
Whereas, John H. Reed, Jr. was born on October 25, 1919, in
Craddock, Virginia, the oldest child of John H. Reed, Sr. and
Nellie Grey Hutchison Reed; and
Whereas, John H. Reed, Jr. grew up in the Spring Hill section
of South Charleston, within sight of the present location of the
Dunbar Toll Bridge and graduated from South Charleston High School
in 1937, where he excelled in the classroom and on the football
field; he then attended Kanawha College where he met the love of
his life and future wife, Lottie Miller; he graduated from New
River State College in 1941, where he was a member of the football,
basketball and baseball teams; and
Whereas, In November, 1941, Mr. Reed enlisted in the U.S. Army,
where he became a "ninety day wonder" 2nd Lieutenant and served
throughout World War II in the 40th Combat Engineer Regiment, in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and also in Germany, where he
was one of the first Allied troops to enter and liberate the Nazi
concentration camp at Dachau; and
Whereas, In 1949, Mr. Reed graduated from Washington & Lee
University College of Law, having completed law school in just two
years, and returned to South Charleston where he opened a private
practice and also became an adjunct professor at Morris Harvey
College; and
Whereas, In the early 1950's, John H. Reed, Jr. served as
council to the West Virginia Turnpike Commission and oversaw the
title acquisition of property for the right-of-way for the West
Virginia Turnpike; and
Whereas, In 1958, John H. Reed, Jr. became the first elected
municipal judge for the City of South Charleston and during his
four year term, no fatal automobile accidents occurred in South
Charleston; and
Whereas, After World War II, Mr. Reed continued his military
service in the U.S. Army Reserve and attained the rank of
Lieutenant Colonel; he retired in 1970 as the Commander of the 38th
Ordinance Group of Troop Units, which included command of all of
the Army Reserve components in the state; and
Whereas, John H. Reed, Jr. also served his community and
profession as a member and former president of the Spring Hill
chapter of the Civitans, former state committeeman and parliamentarian of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America,
former officer of the West Virginia Trial Lawyers Association
and
former chairman of the Unlawful Practice Committee of the West
Virginia State Bar; and
Whereas, John H. Reed, Jr. departed this life on November 16,
2004, and is survived by his daughter, Donna Lurena Turner and her
husband, J. Thomas Turner, of South Charleston, West Virginia;
son, John H. Reed, III and his wife, Jane Ann Reed, of Hurricane,
West Virginia; son, Ellis Miller Reed and his wife, Lisa Reed, of
Orlando Florida; grandchildren, David Turner, Joanna Elizabeth
Cook, Leah Anne Reed, Jeffrey Reed and Ellisa Reed; sister Dorothy
LaCascio of Tucson, Arizona; and brother Malcolm E. Reed, of
Harrison, Arkansas; and
Whereas, It is fitting to honor John H. Reed, Jr. for his
service to his community, his state and his country by naming the
Dunbar Toll Bridge as the "John H. Reed, Jr. Memorial Bridge";
therefore, be it
Resolved by the West Virginia Legislature:
That the Legislature hereby requests the Division of Highways
to name the bridge known as the Dunbar Toll Bridge on County Route
25/47, 0.1 mile north of the junction of U.S. Route 60 and crossing
U.S. Route 60 and the Great Kanawha River, near South Charleston,
West Virginia, otherwise identified as bridge number 20A337, as the
"John H. Reed, Jr. Memorial Bridge"
; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Division of Highways is hereby
requested to have made and be placed signs identifying the bridge
as the "John H. Reed, Jr. Memorial Bridge"; 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 family of John H. Reed, Jr.