S*816 Session 125 (2023-2024) S 816 Resolution, By Gambrell
A senate RESOLUTION
to recognize and honor José Acaba, An
Whereas, the members of
the South Carolina Senate are pleased to commend the beautiful work of José
Acaba and his meaningful role in the
Whereas, born in New
York City on October 1, 1932, Mr. Acaba served in the United States Army during
WW II, and used his
Whereas, Mr. Acaba and
his beloved wife of sixty-three years, the late Julia Solero, moved to Honea
Path from Long Island, New York, where he had been an independent
Whereas, he created
numerous theater sets for District 5 School's drama group and assisted the Belton
and Anderson
Whereas, about ten
years after Mr. Acaba moved to the Palmetto State, a merchants' association in
Honea Path realized its need for Whereas, although he
created the mural, funding for it was not forthcoming until recently. Today,
the newly placed
Whereas, Mr. Acaba feels that his paintings are like a book because he has a story to tell, one story now emblazoned on the side of a downtown site. Depicted in the mural is one of the first residents of Honea Path, the Eastern Cherokee. The Cherokee were pushed out of their homeland by settlers of Scots-Irish descent who arrived by Conestoga wagons crossing the Allegheny and Blue Ridge mountains; and
Whereas, he included Honea Path's 1852 addition of a train station providing new economic prospects and stimulating growth in the area. He showed granite stone being manually excavated from the Honea Path quarry to provide for foundations and steppingstones. The granite from the quarry also shored up railroad ties and bridge crossings throughout the Upstate. Built in 1902, Chiquola Textile Mill opened and provided jobs and housing that eventually resulted in the 1917 incorporation of the town; and
Whereas, depicted in the mural is the Carnegie Library built in 1908 in Honea Path which at the time was the smallest town in the United States to have a Carnegie Library. The figure of a retired mill worker seated with a book, watching mill workers go to and from the Mill, represents the new educational opportunities for citizens. The Jennie Erwin Library still stands as an educational hub, as pictured by both a mother reading to her child and a young woman with her computer; and
Whereas, one of the most infamous events in American labor history occurred in 1934 when Chiquola Mill workers went on strike to gain better working conditions. Armed guards killed seven workers and wounded thirty-four. A white dove weeping seven red drops in the mural represents those who died. News of the shootings across the country brought painful attention to Honea Path but helped to establish the forty-hour work week and to keep children in school until their sixteenth birthday; and
Whereas, also pictured in the mural is The Spirit of Honea Path, a World War II fighter plane bought with money raised at a war-bond rally in Honea Path, reflecting the town's patriotism. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the Senate:
That the members of the
South Carolina Senate, by this resolution,
recognize and honor José Acaba, an
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to José Acaba. ----XX---- This web page was last updated on May 23, 2023 at 12:20 PM |