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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Residents of Wise County are visiting Austin on |
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February 12, 2013, to celebrate Wise County Day at the State |
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Capitol; and |
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WHEREAS, Located in the northwestern part of the state, Wise |
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County has a varied terrain, much of which has proven to be fertile |
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farmland; the first known inhabitants of the area in historic times |
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were the Wichita, followed by groups of Caddo, Delaware, and |
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Kichai; Anglo settlers arrived in the 1850s, and on January 23, |
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1856, the county was carved out of Cooke County by legislative act |
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and named in honor of Henry A. Wise, a U.S. congressman from |
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Virginia who had supported the annexation of Texas; at the same time |
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as it created Wise County, the legislature decreed that its county |
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seat be established within five miles of the county's center, and |
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two years later that new community became known as Decatur, after |
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the naval hero Stephen Decatur; and |
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WHEREAS, The eastern fork of the Chisholm Trail passed near |
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Decatur during the latter half of the 19th century, and the town |
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prospered as a shipping point and market for local farmers; today, |
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it is a center for natural gas production, specialty carbon and |
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graphite manufacturing, and health care, as well as marketing and |
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processing for Wise County agribusiness; visitors are drawn to |
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Decatur by such historic attractions as the Waggoner Mansion, the |
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Wise County Heritage Museum, the Wise County Veterans Park, and the |
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pink granite Wise County Courthouse, which was completed in 1896; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Wise County is home to a variety of recreational |
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opportunities provided by Lake Bridgeport, Eagle Mountain Lake, and |
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the Caddo-Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands; in addition, area |
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residents celebrate their heritage with the annual Butterfield |
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Stage Days Festival in May, the Wise County Old Settlers Reunion in |
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July, and the Chisholm Trail Days and Western Heritage Festival in |
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September; and |
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WHEREAS, The citizens of Wise County may take justifiable |
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pride in their corner of Texas and know that it has contributed |
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immensely to the development and vitality of the Lone Star State; |
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now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas |
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Legislature hereby recognize February 12, 2013, as Wise County Day |
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at the State Capitol and extend best wishes to the visiting |
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delegation for an informative and enjoyable stay in Austin. |