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Bill Clay

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For other people with similar names, see William Clay.
Bill Clay
Official portrait, c. 1980s
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 1st district
In office
January 3, 1969 – January 3, 2001
Preceded byFrank M. Karsten
Succeeded byLacy Clay
Personal details
Born
William Lacy Clay

(1931-04-30)April 30, 1931
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
DiedJuly 16, 2025(2025-07-16) (aged 94)
Virginia, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Carol Ann Johnson
​
​
(m. 1953; died 2025)​
Children3, including Lacy
EducationSaint Louis University (BS)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1953-1955

William Lacy "Bill" Clay Sr. (April 30, 1931 – July 16, 2025) was an American politician from Missouri who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives representing Missouri's 1st congressional district containing portions of St. Louis for 32 years from 1969 to 2001. He was a member of the Democratic Party and one of the 13 co-founding members of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Background

Clay was born in St. Louis on April 30, 1931, the son of Luella S. (Hyatt) and Irving Charles Clay.[1] He graduated from Saint Louis University in 1953. Clay served in the United States Army from 1953 to 1955, and was a St. Louis alderman from 1959 to 1964. Clay served 105 days in jail for participating in the Jefferson Bank and Trust Co. civil rights demonstration in 1963. Clay organized, and was among those who led, this protest as well.[2][3] Prior to entering Congress, Clay held jobs first as a real-estate broker and later as a labor coordinator. He worked for the union of St. Louis city employees from 1961 to 1964 and then with a steamfitters union local until 1967.[citation needed]

Clay married Carol Ann Johnson in 1953. They had three children, including Lacy Clay, who would be elected in 2000 to succeed his father in the U.S. House of Representatives.[4][5] The Clay family were parishioners at the predominantly black St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in St. Louis. On February 16, 2025, Carol Clay died at the age of 89.[6] Bill Clay died five months later, on July 16, 2025, at the age of 94.[7]

Politics

Clay was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1968. Along with fellow African American lawmakers such as former Reps. Shirley Chisholm (D-NY) and Louis Stokes (D-OH), Clay was one of three newcomer members of Congress in 1969 who helped co-found of the Black Congressional Caucus predecessor group the "Democratic Select Committee" at behest of Charles Diggs (D-MI).[8][9] However, shortly after the opening of the 92nd Congress (1971–1973), Clay would help lay for the foundation for the creation of the Congressional Black Caucus when he proposed transforming the Democratic Select Committee into a formal nonpartisan caucus for African American members. He became an advocate for environmentalism, labor issues, and social justice. Clay voted for the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. From 1991 until the Democrats lost control of Congress in 1995, Clay chaired the House Committee on the Post Office and Civil Service. In 2000, he retired from the House, and his son, Lacy, succeeded him.

Honors

In 1996, the William L. Clay Center for Molecular Electronics (now the Center for Nanoscience) was dedicated in his honor on the campus of the University of Missouri–St. Louis.

Clay was also the founder of the William L. Clay Scholarship and Research Fund, which awards college scholarships to high-school seniors living in Missouri's First Congressional District. The Fund, which is a 501(c)3 organization, has awarded scholarships since 1985.

The Poplar Street Bridge, which connects St. Louis, Missouri, and the town of East St. Louis, Illinois, was renamed Congressman William L. Clay Bridge on October 7, 2013.[10]

William L. Clay has a star and biographical plaque on the St. Louis Walk of Fame.[11]

Works

Clay wrote several works of non-fiction.

  • To Kill or Not to Kill: Thoughts on Capital Punishment (1990) ISBN 0-89370-331-1
  • Just Permanent Interests: Black Americans in Congress, 1870–1991 (1992) ISBN 1-56743-000-7
  • Racism in the White House: A Common Practice of Most United States Presidents (2002) ISBN 0-88258-206-2
  • Bill Clay: A Political Voice at the Grass Roots (2004) ISBN 1-883982-52-9 Designed by Steve Hartman of Creativille, Inc. Creativille, Inc. - Be Simple. Be Passionate. Be Creative.
  • The Jefferson Bank Confrontation (2008) ISBN 0-944514-34-0

See also

References

  1. ^ "Lacy Clay ancestry". freepages.rootsweb.com.
  2. ^ Banker, Andy; Schneider, Joey (July 17, 2025). "William Lacy 'Bill' Clay Sr., Missouri's first Black congressman, dies at 94". Fox 2 St Louis. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  3. ^ Lewis-Thompson, Marissanne (August 28, 2024). "The Jefferson Bank Protests changed work for Black St. Louisans. A new play details its legacy". St Louis Public Radio. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  4. ^ "Clay, William Lacy 1931–". Contemporary Black Biography. Encyclopedia.com. 2005. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  5. ^ "CLAY, William Lacy, Sr". United States House of Representatives Office of the Historian. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  6. ^ American, The Clay family for The St Louis (2025-03-07). "Carol Ann Johnson Clay passes at 89". St. Louis American. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  7. ^ Bill Clay Sr., Missouri’s first Black congressman who wielded power for 32 years, dies at 94
  8. ^ History, Art and Archives. "The Rise of the Congressional Black Caucus". U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  9. ^ Svirnovskiy, Gregory (July 17, 2025). "Bill Clay Sr., founding member of Congressional Black Caucus, dies". Politico. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  10. ^ "St. Louis bridge renamed for long-time congressman : Stltoday". www.stltoday.com. Archived from the original on 13 October 2013. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  11. ^ St. Louis Walk of Fame. "St. Louis Walk of Fame Inductees". stlouiswalkoffame.org. Archived from the original on 31 October 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2013.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 1st congressional district
1969–2001 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the House Civil Service Committee
1991–1995 		Position abolished
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