By Holzheauser H.R. No. 729 74R11314 SAJ-D R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, The Texas House of Representatives is proud to honor 1-2 the Carl and Mary Welhausen Library in Yoakum on the dedication of 1-3 its Texas Historical Marker on April 23, 1995; and 1-4 WHEREAS, Originally known as the Yoakum Library, it was 1-5 organized by the Philomathic Club in 1933, and noted businessman J. 1-6 W. Cook generously offered a site in back of his office as the 1-7 library's first home; and 1-8 WHEREAS, The library relocated to the old Beck building on 1-9 Nelson Street in 1955 and later moved into the old City Hall 1-10 building; in 1988, at the request of the Friends of the Yoakum 1-11 Library, the city offered the old Municipal Power Plant building 1-12 for use as a library; and 1-13 WHEREAS, An excellent example of industrial architecture, the 1-14 Municipal Power Plant building was designed by Montgomery and Ward 1-15 Engineers of Wichita Falls and was built in 1932 by Yoakum resident 1-16 F. O. Crawford; the land was purchased from the Spencer-Sauer 1-17 Lumber Company; and 1-18 WHEREAS, The building housed the city's sole electric power 1-19 plant until 1938, and it was used as an auxiliary plant until the 1-20 early 1960s; from 1964 to 1989 it served as a municipal machine 1-21 shop; and 1-22 WHEREAS, After the building was deemed appropriate for use as 1-23 a library, the Friends of the Yoakum Library embarked on an 1-24 ambitious fund-raising campaign to restore and convert the lovely 2-1 and historic building; they were amply rewarded for their efforts 2-2 at the dedication of the newly renamed Carl and Mary Welhausen 2-3 Library in 1991; and 2-4 WHEREAS, Their outstanding work earned them well-deserved 2-5 acclaim; the Texas Downtown Association recognized the structure as 2-6 a fine example of restoration and adaptive reuse of a historic 2-7 building, and after meticulous research, the old Municipal Power 2-8 Plant building was designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 2-9 1993; and 2-10 WHEREAS, The Friends of the Yoakum Library and the DeWitt 2-11 County Historical Commission have done a commendable job in 2-12 preserving an important part of Texas' past, and their noteworthy 2-13 efforts have helped ensure that the unique Municipal Power Plant 2-14 building will remain a focal point in the Yoakum community for many 2-15 years to come; now, therefore, be it 2-16 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas 2-17 Legislature hereby honor the Carl and Mary Welhausen Library on the 2-18 dedication of its Texas Historical Marker and commend the Friends 2-19 of the Yoakum Library and the DeWitt County Historical Commission 2-20 for their exceptional efforts to preserve an important piece of 2-21 local architecture.