H.C.R. No. 63
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The Texas Historical Commission, whose
responsibility is to protect and preserve the state's historic and
prehistoric resources for the use, education, enjoyment, and
economic benefit of present and future generations, celebrates its
50th anniversary in 2003; and
WHEREAS, Texas lawmakers, seeing a need to coordinate efforts
to ensure the preservation of the state's unique history, created
the Texas State Historical Survey Committee in 1953 to identify
historic sites and resources across the state; and
WHEREAS, Today that committee has come to be known as the
Texas Historical Commission, an agency noted both nationally and
internationally for its work in helping communities preserve their
historic character and assisting Texans with questions and concerns
about archeology, architecture, history, economic development, and
heritage tourism; and
WHEREAS, In fulfilling its mission as the state agency for
historic preservation, the Texas Historical Commission has
developed and is implementing a strategic plan that is detailed in
the document Preserving Our Texas Heritage: A Statewide Plan for
Texas; and
WHEREAS, The Texas Historical Commission is working with 142
counties to promote travel to historic sites and surrounding areas
through the Texas Heritage Trails Program, an initiative designed
to stimulate the state's regional economies; and
WHEREAS, Another successful undertaking, the commission's
Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program, has drawn the
attention of other states for its achievements in restoring
historic county courthouses and promoting economic growth and
development in county seats across the state, particularly in rural
areas of Texas; and
WHEREAS, In Matagorda Bay in 1995, Texas Historical
Commission archeologists discovered one of the most important
shipwrecks in North American history, La Salle's ship the Belle;
their year-long excavation resulted in the recovery of more than a
million artifacts and the conservation of the ship's hull; they
then went on to excavate nearby Fort St. Louis, the state's first
European settlement; and
WHEREAS, The Texas Main Street Program, established in 1981,
has become one of the most successful such endeavors in the nation,
stimulating more than $880 million in private-sector downtown
reinvestment, creating over 19,000 new jobs in Texas, and leading
to the expansion or recruitment of more than 4,800 businesses; and
WHEREAS, The Texas Historical Commission has distributed
more than $2.4 million in grant money to assist Texas communities in
establishing high standards of preservation through the Certified
Local Government Program; it has also disbursed over $2 million to
help save endangered historic buildings and important
archeological sites through the Texas Preservation Trust Fund; and
WHEREAS, More than 12,000 historical markers have been
erected by the commission, the largest number in any state; in
addition, the commission works to protect and designate historic
cemeteries throughout Texas; and
WHEREAS, The agency reaches out to communities through its
county historical commissions; in 2002, more than 4,500 individuals
donated 215,000 hours to local preservation efforts; and
WHEREAS, For half a century, the Texas Historical Commission
has initiated and carried out programs that have been instrumental
in preserving the state's historic resources and that have
contributed significantly to local economies; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 78th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby extend sincere thanks to the Texas Historical Commission for
its efforts in preserving the unique history of the Lone Star State
and encourage all Texans to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the
commission by visiting historic Texas sites throughout the year.
Hilderbran
Craddick
Giddings
Merritt
Allen
Goodman
Miller
Alonzo
Goolsby
Moreno of Harris
Bailey
Griggs
Moreno of El Paso
Baxter
Grusendorf
Morrison
Berman
Guillen
Mowery
Bohac
Gutierrez
Naishtat
Bonnen
Haggerty
Nixon
Branch
Hamilton
Noriega
Brown of Kaufman
Hamric
Oliveira
Brown of Brazos
Hardcastle
Olivo
Burnam
Harper-Brown
Paxton
Callegari
Hartnett
Pena
Campbell
Heflin
Phillips
Canales
Hegar
Pickett
Capelo
Hilderbran
Pitts
Casteel
Hill
Puente
Castro
Hochberg
Quintanilla
Chavez
Hodge
Rangel
Chisum
Homer
Raymond
Christian
Hope
Reyna
Coleman
Hopson
Riddle
Cook of Navarro
Howard
Ritter
Cook of Colorado
Hughes
Rodriguez
Corte
Hunter
Rose
Crabb
Hupp
Seaman
Crownover
Isett
Smith of Tarrant
Davis of Harris
Jones of Lubbock
Smith of Harris
Davis of Dallas
Jones of Bexar
Smithee
Dawson
Jones of Dallas
Solis
Delisi
Keel
Solomons
Denny
Keffer of Dallas
Stick
Deshotel
Keffer of Eastland
Swinford
Driver
King
Talton
Dukes
Kolkhorst
Taylor
Dunnam
Krusee
Telford
Dutton
Kuempel
Thompson
Edwards
Laney
Truitt
Eiland
Laubenberg
Turner
Eissler
Lewis
Uresti
Elkins
Luna
Van Arsdale
Ellis
Mabry
Villarreal
Farabee
Madden
West
Farrar
Marchant
Wilson
Flores
Martinez Fischer
Wise
Flynn
McCall
Wohlgemuth
Gallego
McClendon
Wolens
Garza
McReynolds
Wong
Gattis
Menendez
Woolley
Geren
Mercer
Zedler
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.C.R. No. 63 was adopted by the House on
February 26, 2003, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.C.R. No. 63 was adopted by the Senate on
February 26, 2003, by a viva-voce vote.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor