2005-2006 Bill 1473: Louis Julian Hatcher - South Carolina Legislature Online

1 South Carolina General Assembly 2 116th Session, 2005-2006 3 4 S. 1473 5 6 STATUS INFORMATION 7 8 Senate Resolution 9 Sponsors: Senator Moore 10 Document Path: l:\council\bills\bbm\9568htc06.doc 11 12 Introduced in the Senate on June 14, 2006 13 Adopted by the Senate on June 14, 2006 14 15 Summary: Louis Julian Hatcher 16 17 18 HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS 19 20 Date Body Action Description with journal page number 21 6/14/2006 Senate Introduced and adopted SJ-67 22 23 24 VERSIONS OF THIS BILL 25 26 6/14/2006 27 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 A SENATE RESOLUTION 10 11 TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR LOUIS JULIAN HATCHER 12 FOR HIS COURAGEOUS CONTRIBUTIONS TO HIS 13 COUNTRY WHILE SERVING AS A PETTY OFFICER IN THE 14 UNITED STATES NAVY DURING THE ATTACK ON PEARL 15 HARBOR AND TO WISH HIM ALL THE BEST IN THE 16 COMING YEARS. 17 18 Whereas, it is with great pride that the South Carolina Senate 19 commends those individuals who selflessly serve in the Armed 20 Forces of the United States, putting themselves in the literal line of 21 fire in benefit of this great Nation; and 22 23 Whereas, before his service in the Navy, Mr. Hatcher worked in 24 the weave room of Granite Division of Graniteville Company, 25 making thirty cents an hour. Aspiring to greater ambitions, Mr. 26 Hatcher enlisted in the United States Navy on December 1, 1937, 27 and after a year of boot camp and training as a boiler operator, he 28 joined the crew of the USS Honolulu in New York; and 29 30 Whereas, a devoted husband, Mr. Hatcher shares a loving marriage 31 with the former Zoe A. Jones of Langley, South Carolina; and 32 33 Whereas, on the fateful day of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor 34 on December 7, 1941, Mr. Hatcher and fellow boiler operators 35 were responsible for producing steam in the boilers so that the ship 36 could move out of the harbor. With full power produced three 37 times faster than was thought safely possible, Petty Officer 38 Hatcher played a large part in getting the ship out of harm’s way 39 during the attack; and 40 41 Whereas, Mr. Hatcher remained aboard the USS Honolulu until 42 September 1943, and was involved in numerous battles in the

1 [1473] 1 1 South Pacific, including the Battles of Tassafaronga, Sunda 2 Straight, Kula Gulf, and Kolombangara; and 3 4 Whereas, thereafter attending naval school in Miami, Florida, Mr. 5 Hatcher was transferred to the USS Hubbard in Charleston, South 6 Carolina, a ship which escorted convoys in the North Atlantic for 7 the remainder of World War II and was credited with sinking two 8 German submarines; and 9 10 Whereas, Mr. Hatcher was discharged after the war and worked for 11 a short time in the Georgetown paper mill before returning to his 12 wife and home in Graniteville, South Carolina. With his acquired 13 skills as a boiler operator during the war, Mr. Hatcher became a 14 boiler operator of the Stevens Steam Plant, where he was quickly 15 promoted to Shift Foreman and eventually became the Assistant 16 Plant Superintendent and Superintendent; and 17 18 Whereas, his position as Superintendent is particularly noteworthy, 19 as he remains the only person ever to lead the plant without a 20 college degree; and 21 22 Whereas, active within his community, Mr. Hatcher is a life 23 member of the American Legion Post Samuel H. Swint Post 77 in 24 Graniteville and the South Carolina Department of Pearl Harbor 25 Survivors Association; and 26 27 Whereas, he is serving on the Board of Directors for the Empty 28 Valley Stocking Fund for the past fifteen years, and is a member of 29 St. James Lutheran Church; and 30 31 Whereas, the Senate stands humbled by Mr. Hatcher’s 32 immeasurable contributions to the security of the Nation and 33 honors him for his heroism. Now, therefore, 34 35 Be it resolved by the Senate: 36 37 That the members of the South Carolina Senate, by this resolution, 38 recognize and honor Louis Julian Hatcher for his courageous 39 contributions to his country while serving as a Petty Officer in the 40 United States Navy during the attack on Pearl Harbor, and wish 41 him all the best in the coming years. 42

1 [1473] 2 1 Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to 2 Mr. Louis Julian Hatcher. 3 ----XX---- 4

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