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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton was born in his grandfather's home
3in Pocahontas on July 4, 1930; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Coming from a very poor background, Richard
5Clayton started working at the age of 10 to support his
6grandparents; in 1943, he worked at the Hartfield Show Tannery
7for $0.82 cents an hour; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton graduated from Pocahontas High
9School, where he was a star basketball player; he enrolled in
10Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, but his family's
11finances did not allow him to stay and earn a degree; he
12enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1950, achieving
13the rank of sergeant and serving honorably until his discharge
14in 1952; and
 
15    WHEREAS, After being discharged from the Marines, Richard
16Clayton worked as a carpenter at Granite City Steel in
17Collinsville; he was a construction foreman for various
18companies until becoming a superintendent with Gorman & Sons in
19East St. Louis; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton married Marjory Ellen Hicks in
21December of 1953; Marjory's career spanned 31 years teaching at

 

 

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1Highland Junior and Senior High Schools; Richard built a house
2for his family on four acres of a former corn field along Route
3160 between Highland and Grantfork, where he and his wife
4raised two children, Warren and Patty; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton's career became focused on
6highway bridge construction in Southern Illinois, working for
7the Bituminous Fuel Oil Company in Collinsville, and later as a
8bridge inspector for the State of Illinois for a short time;
9and
 
10    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton then worked with the Hoefken
11Brothers in Belleville for 10 years; when the owner, John
12Hoefken, left the company and started Mississippi Valley
13Materials, Richard joined him and finished his career at the
14new company; and
 
15    WHEREAS, In 1985, Richard Clayton took early retirement and
16started Chipwood Acres Nursery with his wife on their property
17along Route 160; it was a successful tree and plant nursery for
1820 years where they shared their landscaping talents with the
19local community by providing landscaping design, trees,
20foundation shrubs, flowering perennial and annual plants for
21sale, and personal landscape advice that you could not get
22anywhere else; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton and Marjory retired from the
2nursery in 2005; Marjory passed away in April of 2017; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Richard Clayton remains on their acreage along
4Route 160 still maintaining his green thumb; therefore, be it
 
5    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
6HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE
7CONCURRING HEREIN, that, in honor of his contribution to the
8betterment of the State, we designate the bridge on Route 160
9between Highland and Grantfork in Madison County crossing over
10I-70 as the "Richard Clayton Bridge-Southern Illinois Bridge
11Builder"; and be it further
 
12    RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Transportation
13is requested to erect at suitable locations, consistent with
14State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs
15giving notice of the name "Richard Clayton Bridge-Southern
16Illinois Bridge Builder"; and be it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
18presented to Richard Clayton, Highland Mayor Joseph R.
19Michaelis, and the Secretary of Transportation.