By Shields H.C.R. No. 319 77R17941 MMS-D HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, The year 2001 marks the quasquicentennial of the 1-2 Texas Constitution, and the 125th anniversary of this foundation 1-3 document is indeed worthy of special recognition; and 1-4 WHEREAS, On August 2, 1875, Texas voters approved the calling 1-5 of a convention to write a new state constitution; the convention, 1-6 held in Austin, began on September 6, 1875, and adjourned sine die 1-7 on November 24, 1875; then its draft was ratified in a statewide 1-8 referendum on February 15, 1876, by a vote of 136,606 to 56,652; 1-9 and 1-10 WHEREAS, The more than 90 delegates to the 1875 1-11 Constitutional Convention were a diverse group--most were farmers 1-12 and lawyers; some were merchants, editors, and physicians; some 1-13 were legislators and judges; some had fought in the Civil War 1-14 armies of the South as well as of the North; at least five were 1-15 African-American; 75 were Democrats; 15 were Republicans; and 37 1-16 belonged to the Grange, a non-partisan and agrarian order of 1-17 patrons of husbandry; one delegate had even served nearly four 1-18 decades earlier as a delegate to the 1836 Constitutional 1-19 Convention; and 1-20 WHEREAS, The Constitution of 1876, a richly detailed 1-21 instrument, reflects several historical influences; the Spanish and 1-22 Mexican heritage of the state was evident in such provisions as 1-23 those pertaining to land titles and land law, as well as to water 1-24 and mineral law, and remains evident in judicial procedures, 2-1 legislative authority, and gubernatorial powers; and 2-2 WHEREAS, Sections aimed at monied corporate domination 2-3 together with protection of the rights of the individual and others 2-4 mandating strong restrictions upon the mission of state government 2-5 in general and upon the role of specific state officials grew out 2-6 of the Jacksonian agrarianism and frontier philosophy that first 2-7 infused the thinking of many Texans during the mid-1800's; and 2-8 WHEREAS, Other sections, such as those providing for low 2-9 taxation and decreased state spending, were aimed at creating a 2-10 government quite different from the centralized and more expensive 2-11 one that had existed under the Constitution of 1869, which was 2-12 itself a product of the post-Civil War Reconstruction Era in Texas; 2-13 and 2-14 WHEREAS, Notwithstanding its age, Texas voters have been 2-15 reluctant to replace this charter, which is the sixth Texas 2-16 constitution to have been adopted since independence from Mexico 2-17 was gained in 1836; and 2-18 WHEREAS, The Constitution of 1876 has been the organic law of 2-19 Texas for 125 years, and this document, which still bears the 2-20 imprint of the region's long and dramatic history, has had--and 2-21 continues to have--a profound influence on the development of the 2-22 Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it 2-23 RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas, 2-24 Regular Session, 2001, hereby commemorate the quasquicentennial of 2-25 the Texas Constitution.