[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1085 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1085
Honoring and celebrating the contributions of African-Americans to the
transportation and infrastructure of the United States.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 22, 2010
Ms. Corrine Brown of Florida (for herself, Mr. Oberstar, Mr. Cummings,
Ms. Richardson, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Mrs. Napolitano,
Mr. Hare, Mr. Perriello, Mr. Boswell, Mr. Sires, Mr. Filner, Ms.
Norton, Mr. Cohen, Ms. Edwards of Maryland, Mr. Shuler, Ms. Hirono, Mr.
Holden, Mr. Costello, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Johnson
of Georgia, Ms. Jackson Lee of Texas, Mr. Meek of Florida, and Mr.
Towns) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Honoring and celebrating the contributions of African-Americans to the
transportation and infrastructure of the United States.
Whereas African-Americans have played an instrumental role in developing and
improving the transportation and infrastructure of the United States
through leadership, design, and innovation;
Whereas the contributions of African-Americans have had significant and far-
reaching impacts on modern transportation systems, including airways,
highways, and railways, and have led to momentous improvements to
transportation safety and security;
Whereas, in aviation, for example, Elizabeth ``Bessie'' Coleman, a daring stunt
pilot known as ``Queen Bess'', was the first African-American woman to
become a licensed airplane pilot in 1921 and the first United States
citizen of any race or gender to hold an international aviation license
from the Federation Aeronautique Internationale;
Whereas Eugene Jaques Bullard was the first African-American military pilot in
history, serving as a United States volunteer in the French army during
World War I;
Whereas Cornelius R. Coffey established the Coffey School of Aeronautics at
Harlem Airport in Chicago, where more than 1,500 African-American
students trained as pilots and mechanics from 1938 to 1945, including
many who would later become Tuskegee Airmen;
Whereas Willa Beatrice Brown, the first African-American woman to receive a
United States private pilot license in 1938, helped found the National
Airmen's Association of America in 1939, later became the coordinator of
war-training service for the Civil Aeronautics Authority, and served as
the first African-American female officer in the Civil Air Patrol;
Whereas Neil V. Loving helped form an all African-American Civil Air Patrol
Squadron in Detroit, established the Wayne School of Aeronautics in
1946, designed and built several experimental aircraft, and performed
critical research as an aerospace engineer for the United States Air
Force;
Whereas Marlon Green became the first African-American pilot for a major airline
in 1965 after winning a landmark racial discrimination employment case
in the Supreme Court of the United States, and served earlier in his
career as a Captain in the United States Air Force for 9 years;
Whereas the Tuskegee Airmen were the first African-American airmen, aircraft and
engine mechanics, armament specialists, radio repairmen, parachute
riggers, control tower operators, policemen, and administrative clerks
during World War II, and whose service and performance were instrumental
in ending segregation in the United States military;
Whereas Dr. Lewis A. Jackson, an aviation pioneer and educator, was the director
of training at the Army Air Force 66th Flight Training Detatchment at
Moton Field, the primary flight training site for the Tuskegee Airmen,
and also pursued designing an experimental aircraft called a roadable
airplane;
Whereas Elinor Williams became the first African-American woman to be an air
traffic controller in 1968 and the first African-American woman to
manage an Air Route Traffic Control Center, who then went on to become
the regional administrator of the Great Lakes Region for the Federal
Aviation Administration;
Whereas LeRoy Wilton Homer, Jr., courageously served as the first officer of
United Airlines Flight 93, which was overtaken by terrorists on
September 11, 2001, and previously served in the United States Air Force
in the Persian Gulf War;
Whereas Barrington Irving became the first African-American and youngest
individual at 23 to fly solo around-the-world in his custom-built
Columbia 400 named Inspiration in June 2007, and founded the non-profit
organization Experience Aviation, Inc. to introduce youth to aviation
and aerospace and to address the shortage of young people pursuing
careers in those fields;
Whereas African-Americans have also played important roles in shaping the
Nation's highways, bridges, and transit and rail systems throughout the
country's history through innovation, pioneering new technologies, and
building the infrastructure that connects the Nation and enables
economic growth and prosperity;
Whereas Garrett A. Morgan invented the Automatic Traffic Signal, a precursor to
the modern traffic light;
Whereas Horace King became known as ``The Bridge Builder'' for his work
rebuilding bridges throughout Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina,
Alabama, New York, and many other States and passed on his legacy to his
children through the family business, the Bridge Company;
Whereas Archibald Alexander placed his mark on the Nation's capital by designing
the Tidal Basin Bridge and the Whitehurst Freeway in Washington, DC;
Whereas the all African-American 93rd, 95th, and 97th Army Engineer General
Service Regiments overcame harsh environmental conditions and racial
discrimination to help build the most difficult and hazardous portion of
the Alaska Highway;
Whereas Frederick M. Jones patented the air-conditioning controlling device to
enable the transportation of perishable food using trucks and rail cars,
and also patented the gas engine starter and a control device for
internal combustion engines;
Whereas Richard Spikes is credited with the invention of such advancements as
the automatic car washer, automobile directional signs, the automatic
gear shift and transmission, and the automatic safety brake system;
Whereas M.A. Cherry invented a device known as the Velocipede, a precursor to
the bicycle, and the streetcar fender, designed to prevent collisions
with debris on streetcar tracks;
Whereas Issac R. Johnson invented the bicycle frame in 1899;
Whereas Humphrey Reynolds invented the safety gate for bridges to prevent cars
and pedestrians from entering the tracks at the same time a train is
approaching;
Whereas Benjamin Banneker, an astronomer, surveyor, almanac author, and farmer,
helped survey the boundaries of what became the District of Columbia;
Whereas Walter McClennan invented the automatic railway car door in 1920;
Whereas Elijah McCoy, a fireman and oiler for the Michigan Central Railroad,
developed a ``lubricating cup'' in 1872 to automatically oil steam
engines on trains, which dramatically improved efficiency by eliminating
the frequent stopping necessary for lubrication of the engine;
Whereas other inventors attempted to sell their own versions of the
``lubricating cup'' but most companies wanted the authentic device for
their trains, requesting ``the Real McCoy'';
Whereas according to Booker T. Washington, McCoy had produced more patents than
any other African-American inventor of his time, many of which
contributed to the railroad industry;
Whereas McCoy was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Akron,
Ohio, in 2001;
Whereas Granville T. Woods invented over a dozen devices to improve the railroad
system including his most notable invention in 1887, the Synchronous
Multiplex Railway Telegraph, which enabled communications between moving
and stationary trains creating a system that enabled a railroad engineer
to determine the distance between trains to help improve accidents and
collisions;
Whereas Woods also founded the Woods Railway Telegraph Company and is credited
with the development of a system for overhead electrified railroads,
patented several overhead wire and third rail transmissions systems, and
made improvements to the steam-boiler furnace;
Whereas Andrew Beard, an ex-railroad worker who lost his leg in a car coupling
accident, invented a device in 1897 that automatically performs the
dangerous job of linking rail cars together, commonly called the Jenny
Coupler, the device served as the precursor for the modern system;
Whereas Lewis Howard Latimer, who drafted the patent drawings for Alexander
Graham Bell's patent application for the telephone and established
public lighting systems for entire cities like New York City, Montreal,
Paris, and London, invented a flushing water closet for trains in 1874;
Whereas, A.B. Blackburn patented a railway signal in 1888 designed to be
operated by the wheels of a train;
Whereas W.F. Burr invented a railway switching device in 1899;
Whereas Elbert R. Robinson invented the electric railway trolley in 1893;
Whereas the work of many influential African-Americans through the civil rights
movement and other social and political movements in the United States
led to desegregation in transportation as well as significant
improvements to the working conditions and rights of transportation
workers throughout the United States;
Whereas Rosa Parks, Homer Plessy, and many other civil rights activists insisted
on equitable access to public transportation;
Whereas Pullman Porters, which provided service to and attended to the needs of
passengers on board trains, became leaders in the civil rights movement
and formed the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters in 1925, under the
leadership of civil rights leader A. Philip Randolph, who fought
tirelessly to improve the working conditions and pay for the Pullman
Porters;
Whereas the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters was the first African-American
labor union to sign a collective bargaining agreement with a major
United States corporation on August 25, 1937; and
Whereas National African American History Month is celebrated in February 2010:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) supports the goals and ideals of National African
American History Month;
(2) honors and celebrates the important contributions that
African-Americans have made throughout history to the
transportation and infrastructure of the United States; and
(3) urges citizens and communities throughout the United
States to join with representatives of the Federal Government
to recognize the substantial contributions that African-
Americans have made and continue to make to the Nation's
transportation and infrastructure systems.
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