[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Pages 2185-2186]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                100TH BIRTHDAY OF ELISE KIRKLAND YARDLEY

 Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize Mrs. 
Elise Kirkland Yardley, a daughter of South Carolina, on the occasion 
of her 100th birthday. I wish her many more happy birthdays.
  Mrs. Yardley was born in Camden, South Carolina on February 16, 1899, 
in the historic Camden home known as Cool Springs. She was one of nine 
children born of Thomas and Fredricka Kirkland, and she is the last 
surviving member of her immediate family. The Kirkland family has South 
Carolina roots that stretch back to before the Revolutionary War, and 
it has produced many fine public servants and citizens. Notably among 
them are Lane Kirkland, Mrs. Yardley's nephew and the former President 
of the AFL-CIO.
  After her childhood in Camden, Mrs. Yardley attended Winthrop College 
in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where she graduated in 1919 with a degree 
in teaching. She moved back to Camden and met Sherborne Yardley, the 
man who would become her husband of more than 50 years. The Yardleys 
eventually settled in Birmingham Alabama, where Mr. Yardley worked for 
Republic Steel and Mrs. Yardley ran the household. Mr. Yardley passed 
away in 1978.
  The Yardleys have three children: Thomas, an investment banker, John, 
a clinical pathologist, and Elizabeth, a homemaker. The family has 
grown to include eight grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. I am 
assured that Mrs. Yardley continues to serve as the presiding officer 
over the entire brood.
  Mrs. Yardley still resides in Birmingham, although she returns 
regularly to Camden, where her entire family will gather in a few days 
to celebrate her 100th birthday. When they come together, her family 
will not only be observing Mrs. Yardley's centennial, but also honoring 
a lively, beautiful, and determined woman. They have much to celebrate.
  As we pause briefly today to celebrate her long life, we do well to 
look back on what Mrs. Yardley has seen. She grew up in the rural South 
before that area had electrification. She has seen Halley's Comet pass 
this planet twice, watching it the first time in 1910, when her father 
gathered the family on their porch to marvel at the sight. She was 
alive to witness the invention of the airplane, the automobile, the 
computer, and space travel. Her husband served in the Navy during the 
First World War, and her sons served in the military during the Second 
World War. Her grandfather died in

[[Page 2186]]

the Civil War. She saw the end of the 19th century, the whole of the 
20th century, and will doubtlessly be around to experience the new 
millennium.
  I am pleased to rise today to honor this charming and accomplished 
woman. It seems fitting that I do so not only as the senior senator 
from her home state, but also as the one Member of this body who 
qualifies as Mrs. Yardley's peer. Mrs. Yardley and I both know the many 
rewards of a long and healthy life. I wish her continued good health 
and prosperity.

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