[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 59 (Tuesday, May 12, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H3075-H3076]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO THE LATE CLAIR A. HILL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Shimkus). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from California (Mr. Herger) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. HERGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share a great loss with my 
colleagues. On April 11 of this year our country lost Clair Hill, a man 
I was privileged to call a personal friend. Clair Hill's death is an 
incredible loss to our community, State, and Nation. He was a legend in 
his own time.
  Clair Hill was an internationally renowned engineer who was the major 
contributor to California's water supply planning and management. Mr. 
Hill worked on California's water issues most of his great life, and he 
is one of the principal authors of the original California water plan 
developed in the 1940s.
  Clair Hill was born in 1909 in Redding, California, located within my 
congressional district. A personal friend of mine, Mr. Hill was the 
founder and president of Clair A. Hill & Associates, an engineering 
firm that merged with CH2M in 1971 to form CH2M Hill.
  Mr. Hill, who spent much of his life in Redding, died there on April 
11, 1998, at the age of 89. The father of two sons, he was married to 
his wife, Joan, since July of 1935. Clair Hill was an avid outdoorsman, 
horse enthusiast, and world traveler. Clair Hill studied forestry at 
Oregon State University, working in the northern California logging 
camps during the summers. However, engineering was his eventual 
calling, and Mr. Hill graduated with a civil engineering degree from 
Stanford University in 1934.
  Clair Hill worked with the Standard Oil Company in San Francisco and 
the California Bridge Department, now Caltrans, before returning to 
Redding in 1938 to found his engineering firm,

[[Page H3076]]

Clair A. Hill & Associates. He specialized in water resources, 
surveying, mapping, and structural engineering, before entering 
military service in 1941, during World War II. He served 5 years in the 
Aleutian islands. After the war, in 1946, he reorganized his firm, 
which grew steadily in responsibility and reputation in the post-war 
boom.
  Working from offices in California and Alaska, Mr. Hill's firm served 
clients such as the U.S. Air Force, the Sacramento Utility District, 
and Pacific Gas & Electric Company. Clair Hill had an independent 
spirit, and his reputation was embodied in his motto, you will never 
succeed if you don't try.
  This dedication and independence spurred Mr. Hill to obtain a pilot's 
license and purchase his own airplane, which he used to service 
projects throughout California and the Pacific Northwest. Frequently 
called ``California's Mr. Water,'' Clair Hill was well known as a major 
contributor to California's water supply planning and management, 
having served for 32 years in the California Water Commission, 18 of 
those as chairman.
  While on the commission, he signed California's original State water 
plan, which outlined projects that today store water in the State's 
northern section for use by communities and industries throughout the 
State of California.
  In 1988 I was proud to assist in renaming Whiskeytown Dam, near 
Redding, as the Clair A. Hill Whiskeytown Dam. Mr. Hill's assistance 
and advocacy led to the development of the dam and reservoir to benefit 
the Redding area as part of the government's Central Valley water 
project. Although Clair Hill retired as CH2M Hill's California regional 
manager in 1974, he remained active as a consultant and adviser to the 
firm's water resources practice until just recently.
  Mr. Hill was the only honorary life member of the California Water 
Commission. Last year he was one of eight civil engineers nationwide to 
receive an honorary lifetime membership in the American Society of 
Civil Engineers. Clair Hill was also the first recipient of the 
Association of California Water Agency's Lifetime Achievement Award, 
and the National Academy of Engineering elected him to membership in 
1992.
  As I mentioned before, it was truly a privilege to count Clair Hill 
among my good friends. He will be missed by many, and he will never be 
forgotten. Clair Hill, our Nation thanks you.

                          ____________________