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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, A battleship familiar to countless Texans, the USS |
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Texas served honorably in World War I and World War II; and |
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WHEREAS, Built in Newport News, Virginia, the Texas was |
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launched in 1912 and commissioned two years later; after the United |
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States entered World War I, the ship was used to train gun crews for |
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merchant vessels and then assigned a variety of missions in the |
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North Sea; in 1918, it escorted the German Fleet to its surrender |
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anchorage, and it subsequently escorted President Woodrow Wilson to |
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peace talks in France; and |
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WHEREAS, Designated the flagship of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet |
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in 1940, the Texas escorted Atlantic convoys and provided gunfire |
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support for the Allied landings in North Africa in 1942; on D-Day, |
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June 6, 1944, it served as the flagship for the bombardment group |
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supporting the Allied landing on Omaha Beach; the Texas later |
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shelled German positions in southern France before being |
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transferred to the Pacific, where it lent gunfire support and |
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antiaircraft fire to the landings at Iwo Jima and Okinawa; despite |
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seeing action in two world wars, the Texas suffered only one combat |
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casualty, thereby earning the nickname "the Lucky Ship"; and |
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WHEREAS, In addition to its proud record of naval service, |
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the Texas boasts a number of historic distinctions; among U.S. |
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battleships, it was the first to mount antiaircraft guns and the |
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first to launch an aircraft, and it became the first ship in the |
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U.S. Navy to use radar; the Texas is registered as a National |
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Historic Landmark and a National Mechanical Engineering Landmark; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Three years after the end of World War II, this |
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venerable ship was given to the State of Texas and transformed into |
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the first battleship memorial museum in the country; for the past |
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six decades, the ship has been moored at the San Jacinto |
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Battleground, where it is operated as a historic site by the Texas |
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Parks and Wildlife Department; a private nonprofit organization, |
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the Battleship Texas Foundation, provides vital support by raising |
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funds for restoration, enhancements, and educational efforts; the |
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Texas was designated the flagship of the Texas Navy in 1948 and the |
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official State Ship in 1995; and |
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WHEREAS, This imposing battleship opens a window into crucial |
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chapters in naval and world history; more important still, it |
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serves as a monument to freedom and a reminder of the price that has |
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been paid to preserve it; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 81st Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby endorse the restoration, conservation, and presentation of |
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the Battleship Texas at the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic |
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Site in a permanent dry berth, thereby assuring the preservation of |
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this unique asset and icon of the Lone Star State for future |
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generations; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward official copies |
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of this resolution to the commissioners of the Texas Parks and |
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Wildlife Commission and to the executive director of the Texas |
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Parks and Wildlife Department. |