By Clark H.R. No. 821 75R13528 JTR-D R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, Residents of the Lone Star State are known 1-2 throughout the world for the fierce pride we take in our colorful 1-3 history, and residents of the city of Tom Bean will partake of this 1-4 typically Texan tradition when they celebrate Tom Bean Founders' 1-5 Day on May 10, 1997; and 1-6 WHEREAS, First established in 1888 as a stop on the St. Louis 1-7 Southwestern Railway, the town took its name from local legend Tom 1-8 Bean, a wealthy Bonham surveyor and landowner with a mysterious 1-9 past, and although he passed away that same year, speculation on 1-10 his origins remains a favorite topic of the area's amateur 1-11 historians and tale spinners to this day; and 1-12 WHEREAS, One of the region's wealthiest men, Bean often 1-13 boasted that he could ride from Bonham to Austin without ever 1-14 leaving his land, and it was his gift of a 50-acre tract that made 1-15 possible the creation of the town that bore his name; his 1-16 generosity continued even after his death, and his will specified 1-17 that his land should remain unfenced "so poor people could graze 1-18 their livestock on it"; and 1-19 WHEREAS, Toward the end of his life, Bean grew reclusive, 1-20 living in self-imposed poverty, and rumors about his past continued 1-21 to abound; at various times it was claimed that he was wanted for 1-22 murder, that he was the son of a Hessian soldier who fought for the 1-23 Loyalists in the American Revolution, and that he had fled a 1-24 shotgun wedding with the daughter of a prominent judge in Sandwich, 2-1 New Hampshire, while he maintained that he had no family and took 2-2 his name when one day he woke up in a bean patch; and 2-3 WHEREAS, Today, the town of Tom Bean is known for its 2-4 friendly and hard-working citizenry, and these notable Texans 2-5 continue to uphold the legacy of their famous forefather through 2-6 their generosity of spirit, their lively good humor, and their 2-7 justifiable pride in their hometown; now, therefore, be it 2-8 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 75th Texas 2-9 Legislature hereby recognize May 10, 1997, as Tom Bean Founders' 2-10 Day and extend to all those connected with this event sincere best 2-11 wishes for every success in the future.