South Carolina General Assembly
118th Session, 2009-2010

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S. 1434

STATUS INFORMATION

Concurrent Resolution
Sponsors: Senator Campsen
Document Path: l:\s-res\gec\056bens.mrh.gec.docx

Introduced in the Senate on May 11, 2010
Introduced in the House on May 12, 2010
Last Amended on May 25, 2010
Adopted by the General Assembly on May 27, 2010

Summary: Ben Sawyer Memorial Bridge

HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS 

     Date      Body   Action Description with journal page number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   5/11/2010  Senate  Introduced, adopted, sent to House SJ-5
   5/12/2010  House   Introduced HJ-16
   5/12/2010  House   Referred to Committee on Invitations and Memorial 
                        Resolutions HJ-16
   5/12/2010  House   Committee report: Favorable Invitations and Memorial 
                        Resolutions HJ-73
   5/13/2010          Scrivener's error corrected
   5/25/2010  House   Amended HJ-121
   5/25/2010  House   Adopted HJ-121
   5/25/2010  House   Returned to Senate with amendments HJ-121
   5/27/2010  Senate  Concurred in amendment SJ-82

View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site

VERSIONS OF THIS BILL

5/11/2010
5/12/2010
5/13/2010
5/25/2010

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

AMENDED--NOT PRINTED IN THE HOUSE

Amt. No. 1 (Doc. Path council\nbd\12410cm10

May 25, 2010

S. 1434

Introduced by Senator Campsen

S. Printed 5/12/10--H.

Read the first time May 12, 2010.

            

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

TO REQUEST THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NAME THE NEWLY CONSTRUCTED REPLACEMENT BRIDGE THAT CROSSES COVE INLET ALONG SOUTH CAROLINA HIGHWAY 703 IN CHARLESTON COUNTY THE "BEN SAWYER MEMORIAL BRIDGE" AND ERECT APPROPRIATE MARKERS OR SIGNS AT THIS BRIDGE THAT CONTAIN THE WORDS "BEN SAWYER MEMORIAL BRIDGE".

Amend Title To Conform

Whereas, Ben M. Sawyer, Chief Highway Commissioner of South Carolina from September 26, 1926, until his untimely death on December 22, 1940, worked untiringly for the construction of the State Highway System of South Carolina; and

Whereas, the historic Ben Sawyer Bridge was built in 1945 to supplant a trolley bridge between Sullivan's Island and Mount Pleasant, which connected the barrier islands of Sullivan's Island and Isle of Palms with the rest of the Charleston area; and

Whereas, during the replacement of the old bridge with the new bridge, the bridge was closed to traffic for just eleven days, and the new bridge opened on February 19, 2010; and

Whereas, Ben Sawyer is most famous for being the Chief Highway Commissioner on October 28, 1935, when, by executive proclamation, Governor Olin Johnston declared the Highway Department to be in a state of, "rebellion, insurrection, resistance and insurgency . . . against the laws of the State of South Carolina"; and

Whereas, Governor Johnston commissioned armed militia to take over the Highway Department, including its roadways, road projects, contracts and financial assets. The governor discharged the department's 2,000 employees and stationed machine guns at the entrance of the John C. Calhoun Building on the State House grounds, denying access to the department's office building to all but the militia forces he commissioned to take control of the department; and

Whereas, on October 30, 1935, the four highway commissioners representing the then four congressional districts in South Carolina were C.F. Rizer, E.T. Heyward, Ralph J. Ramer, and W. Fred Lightsey. These four commissioners filed an action to enjoin Governor Johnston's takeover of the Highway Department. Accepting the case in its original jurisdiction, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled in the case Hearon v. Calus (1935) that Governor Johnston had exceeded his executive authority in wresting control of the Highway Department from the Highway Commission and enjoined the governor and his appointed militia from further efforts to control the Highway Department; and

Whereas, it would be fitting and proper for the replacement bridge to bear the same name as its predecessor. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the Senate, the House of Representatives concurring:

That the members of the General Assembly request that the Department of Transportation name the newly constructed replacement bridge that crosses Cove Inlet along South Carolina Highway 703 in Charleston County the "Ben Sawyer Memorial Bridge" and erect appropriate markers or signs at this bridge that contain the words "Ben Sawyer Memorial Bridge".

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Department of Transportation.

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