78R9525 WMS-D

By:  Davis of Dallas                                              H.R. No. 556



R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, The Family Land Heritage Program of the Texas 
Department of Agriculture honors properties in Texas that have been 
owned by the same family and agriculturally productive for more 
than a century, and on March 21, 2003, James Morney's Farm, which is 
today owned by Murdine Berry of Dallas, joins this distinguished 
roster of Texas properties; and
	WHEREAS, This historical property, which is located in 
southern Dallas County, was purchased in 1876 by former slaves 
James and Kathy Morney with several bales of cotton and six years of 
savings; the couple reared their eight children on the farm, and the 
family's standing in the community was reflected by the naming of a 
local school in their honor; and
	WHEREAS, Although the farm was illegally divided in 1932, 
current owner Murdine Berry, a retired Dallas schoolteacher, spent 
more than 25 years painstakingly researching old maps and records 
and worked through the legal system to unify the lands that once 
composed her great-grandfather's farm; and
	WHEREAS, The role of the family farm in Texas history is both 
significant and long-standing, and it is most appropriate that 
James Morney and his descendants be honored for their enduring 
contributions to agriculture in the Lone Star State; now, 
therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 78th Texas 
Legislature hereby congratulate Murdine Berry on the acceptance of 
James Morney's Farm into the Family Land Heritage Program of the 
Texas Department of Agriculture; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 
prepared for Ms. Berry as an expression of high regard by the Texas 
House of Representatives.