H.R. No. 336
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, The city of Dallas marked the 150th anniversary of
its charter in February 2006; and
WHEREAS, Dallas originated as a trading post near the
confluence of the West and Elm Forks of the Trinity River; a town
site was surveyed in 1844, and when Dallas County was organized in
1846, the fledgling community of Dallas became the county seat; and
WHEREAS, The origin of the city's name has long been debated;
possible namesakes include George Mifflin Dallas, vice president of
the United States from 1845 to 1849, his brother, Commodore
Alexander J. Dallas of the U.S. Navy, and Joseph Dallas, an early
resident of the area; and
WHEREAS, Granted a charter by the Texas Legislature on
February 2, 1856, Dallas citizens proceeded to install a city
government; the town's first public officials included Mayor Samuel
B. Pryor, six aldermen, a treasurer-recorder, and a constable; and
WHEREAS, Over the years, the city's form of governance has
changed several times; in 1907, Dallas instituted a commission form
of government, with a mayor and four commissioners to manage city
affairs, and in 1931 it moved to a council-manager system; the first
city council sworn into office was headed by Mayor T. L. Bradford
and composed of W. H. Painter, Joe C. Thomas, T. M. Cullum, A. B.
Moore, H. C. Burroughs, Victor H. Hexter, Charles F. Turner, and E.
R. Brown; and
WHEREAS, Since 1971, the Dallas City Council has been based
on single-member districts, with the mayor elected at large; the
present council includes Mayor Laura Miller, Mayor Pro Tem Donald
W. Hill, Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Dr. Elba Garcia, and Pauline Medrano,
Ed Oakley, Dr. Maxine Thornton-Reese, Steve Salazar, Leo V. Chaney,
Jr., James L. Fantroy, Gary Griffith, Bill Blaydes, Linda Koop, Ron
Natinsky, Mitchell Rasansky, and Angela Hunt; and
WHEREAS, Early in its history, Dallas became a service center
for farmers and ranchers in the surrounding area; its commercial
importance expanded further with the arrival of the Houston and
Texas Central Railway in 1872 and the Texas and Pacific Railway the
following year; one of the first rail crossroads in the state,
Dallas became the main regional shipping point for products
destined for northern and eastern manufacturing plants, as well as
a leading center for the leather and buffalo-hide trade; and
WHEREAS, Strong-willed men and women helped Dallas to rebound
from the Great Depression; in addition to securing the city's
prominence in the realm of petroleum financing, they achieved major
successes with a project to straighten and tame the Trinity River
and a winning bid to host the 1936 Texas Centennial; Fair Park, the
site chosen for the exposition, was extensively made over with the
investment of millions of dollars in private and public donations
and now contains what is believed to be the largest assemblage of
Art Deco art and architecture in the world; a National Historic
Landmark, Fair Park continues to host the annual State Fair of
Texas, which was first staged on its grounds in 1886; and
WHEREAS, During World War II, with the acquisition of North
American Aviation and other war-related industries, Dallas emerged
as a significant manufacturing center; the city's status as one of
the foremost urban areas in the nation was both underscored and
immeasurably enhanced by the opening, in 1974, of the Dallas/Fort
Worth International Airport; and
WHEREAS, Embracing a half square mile when it was first laid
out, Dallas has grown to encompass 384 square miles and a population
of more than 1.2 million people, making it the ninth-largest city in
the United States; driven primarily by the robust Dallas economy,
the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Metropolitan Statistical Area
currently accounts for approximately 30 percent of the gross state
product of Texas; and
WHEREAS, The advantages enjoyed by Dallas extend well beyond
its commanding position as a bastion of business, finance, and
industry; this city also enjoys renown for its outstanding cultural
resources, including institutions such as the Dallas Museum of Art,
Dallas Museum of Natural History, Trammell and Margaret Crow
Collection of Asian Art, and Nasher Sculpture Center; and
WHEREAS, The city's major league sports franchises have all
achieved notable success and garnered the loyalty of countless
fans; contests featuring the Dallas Mavericks, the Dallas Stars,
who won the 1999 Stanley Cup, and the Dallas Cowboys, who have
captured five Super Bowl championships, rank among the area's most
popular attractions; and
WHEREAS, Given the eminent role that Dallas has played in the
development of Texas, it is not surprising that a number of the
state's most important political leaders have hailed from that
community; public officials who have called Dallas home during
their tenure include Governors Charles A. Culberson, 1895-1899, and
William P. Clements, 1979-1983 and 1987-1991, Lieutenant Governors
John McClannahan Crockett, 1861-1863, Barnett Gibbs, 1885-1887,
and Barry Miller, 1925-1931, and Speakers of the House Nicholas
Henry Darnell, 1861-1862, Nathaniel Macon Burford, 1866, John
Hughes Cochran, 1879-1881 and 1893-1895, and William Otey Reed,
1947-1949; and
WHEREAS, Under difficult circumstances, Lyndon Baines
Johnson was sworn in as the nation's 36th president at Love Field in
Dallas in 1963; the city hosted its first major-party presidential
nominating convention in 1984, when Republicans met in Dallas to
endorse Ronald Reagan for a second term in the White House, and
George W. Bush resided in Dallas before his election to the
governorship of Texas and subsequently to the presidency of the
United States; and
WHEREAS, A Lone Star State without Big D, that proud and
vibrant city that epitomizes so many facets of the Texas mystique,
would be utterly unthinkable, and it is indeed a pleasure to join in
commemorating the momentous occasion of that city's
sesquicentennial; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 79th Texas
Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby honor Dallas on the 150th
anniversary of its charter and extend to all the citizens of that
great city sincere best wishes as they look with confidence to the
challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
Branch Anchia
Crownover Driver
England Giddings
Goolsby Harper-Brown
Hill Hodge
Jackson Keffer of Dallas
Madden McCall
Reyna Solomons
Craddick Giddings McReynolds
Allen Gonzales Menendez
Alonzo Gonzalez Toureilles Merritt
Anchia Goodman Miller
Anderson Goolsby Moreno
Bailey Griggs Morrison
Berman Grusendorf Mowery
Blake Guillen Naishtat
Bohac Haggerty Nixon
Bonnen Hamilton Noriega
Branch Hamric Oliveira
Brown of Kaufman Hardcastle Olivo
Brown of Brazos Harper-Brown Orr
Burnam Hartnett Otto
Callegari Hegar Paxton
Campbell Hernandez Pena
Casteel Herrero Phillips
Castro Hilderbran Pickett
Chavez Hill Pitts
Chisum Hochberg Puente
Coleman Hodge Quintanilla
Cook of Navarro Homer Raymond
Cook of Colorado Hope Reyna
Corte Hopson Riddle
Crabb Howard of Fort Bend Ritter
Crownover Howard of Travis Rodriguez
Davis of Harris Hughes Rose
Davis of Dallas Hunter Seaman
Dawson Hupp Smith of Tarrant
Delisi Isett Smith of Harris
Denny Jackson Smithee
Deshotel Jones of Lubbock Solis
Driver Jones of Dallas Solomons
Dukes Keel Strama
Dunnam Keffer of Dallas Straus
Dutton Keffer of Eastland Swinford
Edwards King of Parker Talton
Eiland King of Zavala Taylor
Eissler Kolkhorst Thompson
Elkins Krusee Truitt
England Kuempel Turner
Escobar Laney Uresti
Farabee Laubenberg Van Arsdale
Farrar Leibowitz Veasey
Flores Luna Villarreal
Flynn Madden Vo
Frost Martinez West
Gallego Martinez Fischer Wong
Gattis McCall Woolley
Geren McClendon Zedler
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 336 was adopted by the House on May 2,
2006, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House