W. Graham Claytor Jr. | |
|---|---|
 Claytor in 1984 | |
| President and CEO ofAmtrak | |
| In office 1982–1993 | |
| Preceded by | Alan S. Boyd |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Downs |
| 18thUnited States Deputy Secretary of Defense | |
| In office August 21, 1979 – January 16, 1981 | |
| President | Jimmy Carter |
| Preceded by | Charles Duncan Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Frank Carlucci |
| 63rdUnited States Secretary of the Navy | |
| In office February 14, 1977 – August 24, 1979 | |
| President | Jimmy Carter |
| Preceded by | J. William Middendorf |
| Succeeded by | Edward Hidalgo |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Graham Claytor Jr. (1912-03-14)March 14, 1912 Roanoke, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | May 14, 1994(1994-05-14) (aged 82) Bradenton, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Frances Claytor |
| Education | University of Virginia (BA) Harvard University (LLB) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1941–1946 |
| Rank |  Lieutenant Commander |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
William Graham Claytor Jr. (March 14, 1912 – May 14, 1994) was an Americanattorney,United States Navy officer,railroad executive, and administrator of railroad, transportation, and defense affairs for theUnited States government, working under the administrations of three US presidents.
He is remembered for his actions as the commanding officer of thedestroyer escortUSS Cecil J. Doyle duringWorld War II, which helped to save 316 lives during theUSS Indianapolis tragedy. Over 30 years later, Claytor's moderate actions on behalf of the rights offemale andgay service personnel asSecretary of the Navy were considered progressive for the time. His transportation career included ten years as president of theSouthern Railway and 11 years as the head ofAmtrak, guiding the passenger railroad through a particularly difficult period. He was named the Virginian of the Year in 1977.[1]
Claytor was born inRoanoke, Virginia, on March 14, 1912, and grew up in bothVirginia andPhiladelphia. He was the son ofGertrude Harris Boatwright Claytor, a lyric poet, andWilliam Graham Claytor (1886–1971), who was vice-president ofAppalachian Power.
Claytor graduated from theUniversity of Virginia inCharlottesville, Virginia in 1933. He graduated fromHarvard Law Schoolsumma cum laude in 1936. Heclerked forLearned Hand, Judge of theU.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, then moved toWashington, D.C., to become law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Associate JusticeLouis Brandeis. After his clerkships, he joined the prestigiousWashington law firmCovington and Burling.
In 1940, soon after the start ofWorld War II, 28-year-old Claytor attempted to enlist, but was initially rejected by theUnited States Navy as being too old.[citation needed] He finally joined under a special provision, based upon his previous experience in sports boating, and was assigned to thePacific Theater.
Late in the war, Claytor became commanding officer of the destroyer escortUSS Cecil J. Doyle on patrol in thePacific Ocean.[2] In August 1945, Claytor sped without orders[citation needed] to investigate reports of men floating in the water. AsCecil J. Doyle approached the area at night, Claytor turned the ship's searchlights on the water and straight up on low clouds, lighting up the night, despite the risk of exposing his ship to possible attack by Japanese submarines.[2] These actions facilitated the rescue of the survivors of the sunkencruiserUSS Indianapolis, which was torpedoed by theImperial Japanese Navy submarineI-58.[2]
Indianapolis had been on a secret mission and, due to a communications error, had not been reported as overdue (or missing). An estimated 900 men survived the sinking, but spent days floating in life jackets trying to fight off sharks. While only 316 were rescued out of a crew of 1199 who were aboardIndianapolis, Claytor's actions were widely credited by survivors with preventing an even greater loss of life.[citation needed]
After World War II, Claytor resumed practicing law in Washington, D.C. He became an officer of theSouthern Railway in 1963, and served as president from 1967 to 1977. Notwithstanding his legal background, Claytor was known as an "operations" man, often riding the company's trains, monitoring and questioning performance.[citation needed] In contrast to his predecessor,D. William Brosnan, Claytor was an "employee's President," often chatting with the crews of the trains on which he rode, actively soliciting their suggestions on how to make the railroad run better. He carried this attitude with him during his later service as the president of Amtrak.[citation needed]
Claytor served as theSecretary of the Navy under PresidentJimmy Carter from 1977 to 1979.[3][4] He is credited with leading theUnited States Navy into its first recognition ofwomen's right to serve on ships and ofrights of gays to leave the service without criminal records.[citation needed] His positions were considered by activists to be progressive for the time, leading to further progress years later in these controversial issues.
In 1979, he was appointed to the position ofDeputy Secretary of Defense.[citation needed] GeneralColin Powell served as his military assistant.[citation needed]
In the summer of 1979, he took a brief leave from theDefense Department to serve asActing Secretary of Transportation in President Carter's Cabinet. His service at the Transportation Department bridged the tenures of SecretaryBrock Adams and SecretaryNeil Goldschmidt.
In 1982, Claytor came out of retirement to leadAmtrak. He was recruited and strongly supported byJohn H. Riley, an attorney who was also the head of theFederal Railroad Administration (FRA) under theReagan Administration from 1983 to 1989.
Claytor maintained a good relationship with theU.S. Congress during his 11 years in the position. Within 7 years of being under Claytor's leadership, Amtrak was generating enough money to cover 72 percent of its $1.7 billion operating budget by 1989, up from 48 percent in 1981.[5] This was achieved mainly through vigorous cost-cutting and aggressive marketing. He is credited with bringing political and operational stability to the nation's passenger train network, keeping the railroad functioning properly despite repeated attempts by the administrations of Ronald Reagan and his successorGeorge H. W. Bush to eliminate its funding.
Claytor retired from Amtrak in 1993.
Claytor was named the Virginian of the Year in 1977.[1] In 1989, he was namedRailroader of the Year byRailway Age magazine.[6]
He was the brother ofRobert B. Claytor, who became president ofNorfolk and Western Railway in 1981 and was the first chairman and CEO ofNorfolk Southern after it was formed by merger with the Southern Railway System in 1982.[citation needed] Robert B. Claytor is best remembered by many railfans for reactivatingNorfolk and Western Railway's steam program, which rebuiltsteam locomotivesClass J611 andClass A 1218 at the Steam Restoration Shop at Norris Yard inIrondale, AL, and operated excursion trips. Claytor Jr. would occasionally take the throttle as engineer with his brother on the steam excursions.[citation needed]
Claytor died on May 14, 1994.[7]
At Amtrak'sWashington, DCUnion Station a passenger concourse was renamed "Claytor Concourse" in his honor.[7]
"The Claytor Brothers: Virginians Building America's Railroad" is a semi-permanent exhibit at theVirginia Museum of Transportation inRoanoke, Virginia.[8]
{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)| Business positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President ofSouthern Railway 1967–1977 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President ofAmtrak 1982–1993 | Succeeded by Thomas Downs |
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by | United States Secretary of the Navy February 14, 1977 – August 24, 1979 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | United States Deputy Secretary of Defense 1979–1981 | Succeeded by |
| Awards | ||
| Preceded by | Modern Railways magazine's Man of the Year 1989 | Succeeded by |
 |  | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
