SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 157
	WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is pleased to 
designate February 27, 2003, as Bellville Heritage Gathering
and Austin County Day at the State Capitol; and
	WHEREAS, The Bellville Heritage Gathering and
Austin County Day is held to create a better understanding of
the relevance of the community's diverse culture, history, and 
traditions and to acknowledge its citizens' accomplishments and 
contributions to the people of the state and to the nation; and
	WHEREAS, Bellville became the seat of Austin County in 1848 
and was named for its first settlers, Thomas and James Bell, who 
immigrated from Florida in 1822; and
	WHEREAS, Austin County is named for Stephen Fuller Austin, 
the "Father of Texas," who selected the area for the first 
Anglo-American settlement in Texas in 1823 and is one of the 
oldest counties in Texas; and
	WHEREAS, Austin County was organized in 1837 during
the Republic of Texas; the county experienced three waves of 
settlement, the Anglo-Americans, the German immigrants, and the 
Czech immigrants; and
	WHEREAS, The first county seat was located at San Felipe, 
also the first capital of Texas; the first English school and 
Sunday school in Texas began in San Felipe in 1827, and the first 
newspaper, the Texas Gazette, began in 1829; and
	WHEREAS, Also organized in San Felipe were the Texas Postal 
System and the Committee of Safety, which was founded as 
protection against the Karankawa Indians; the Committee of 
Safety grew in time to be called the Texas Rangers; and
	WHEREAS, Austin County, with its rolling hills and idyllic 
rural settings can be breathtaking in its beauty, and its 
farmhouses and its commercial buildings reveal the vital and 
tenacious pioneer spirit that brought a civilized way of life to 
this land; and
	WHEREAS, Bellville Heritage Gathering and Austin County 
Day provides an opportunity for friends and families to honor 
Bellville and Austin County and to foster an interest in its 
heritage; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
78th Legislature, hereby recognize February 27, 2003, as 
Bellville Heritage Gathering and Austin County Day at the
State Capitol; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for 
the residents of Bellville and Austin County as an expression of 
esteem from the Texas Senate.
                                                                      Armbrister




________________________________ 
    President of the Senate
 
    I hereby certify that the 
above Resolution was adopted by 
the Senate on February 12, 2003.



________________________________ 
    Secretary of the Senate



________________________________ 
     Member, Texas Senate