[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 42 (Wednesday, April 5, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E517]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL

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                            HON. IKE SKELTON

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 5, 2006

  Mr. SKELTON. Mr. Speaker, let me take this means to recognize the 
75th Anniversary of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. I am proud to 
pay tribute to the years of service and protection provided to the 
citizens of Missouri by the Highway Patrol.
  On April 24, 1931, Governor Henry S. Caulfield signed Senate Bill 36, 
establishing the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The bill provided for a 
superintendent, 10 captains, and 115 patrolmen, but only 55 men were 
originally hired as troopers. The first superintendent, Lewis Ellis, 
was hired on July 21, 1931, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol 
became effective on September 14, 1931.
  Throughout its 75 years, the Patrol has provided many invaluable 
services. In addition to enforcing traffic laws, it encourages traffic 
safety to the public through displays, speaking engagements, Community 
Alliance Programs, and the Safety Education Center. The Governor's 
Security Division, a branch of the Patrol, provides security to 
Missouri's governor, his family, and visiting dignitaries. Since the 
Patrol assumed the operation of Missouri's weigh stations in 1942, it 
has also proven vital to the removal of illegal drugs from the 
highways.
  In the last 75 years, Missouri has called upon the Patrol for 
assistance in periods of civil unrest and natural disaster. In 1954, 
troopers were called upon to help quell a full-scale prison riot. The 
Patrol helped Missourians overcome the paralysis caused by the Great 
Flood of 1993. After Hurricane Katrina, 56 Patrol personnel responded 
to a call for assistance to Biloxi, Mississippi.
  Mr. Speaker, the Missouri State Highway Patrol can be proud of all it 
has done for the State of Missouri. I know the Members of the House 
will join me in congratulating the Missouri State Highway Patrol for 75 
years of excellent service.

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