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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