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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Proud residents of Burleson County are gathering in |
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Austin on March 26, 2013, to celebrate the unique role their county |
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has played in the history and culture of the Lone Star State; and |
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WHEREAS, Situated among rolling hills and along the broad |
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valley of the Brazos River, the rich farmland of Burleson County was |
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originally inhabited by the Tonkawa Indians; the first European to |
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visit the region was the French explorer and trader Louis Juchereau |
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de St. Denis; when Anglo-Americans started to settle there during |
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the 1820s, the Mexican government placed a fort along the western |
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bank of the Brazos to stem the tide, but the fort's commander, |
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Lieutenant Colonel Jose Francisco Ruiz, eventually sided with the |
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Texans and became a signer of the Texas Declaration of |
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Independence; and |
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WHEREAS, The town of Caldwell was founded in 1840, and in |
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1846, the state legislature established Burleson County, naming it |
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after Texas revolutionary hero General Edward Burleson and choosing |
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Caldwell as the county seat; during the last half of the 19th |
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century, European immigrants, especially Germans, Austrians, |
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Czechs, and Italians, moved to the area and often set up their own |
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communities; and |
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WHEREAS, Burleson County is situated along the Presidential |
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Corridor linking the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin and the |
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George Bush Presidential Library and Museum in College Station; |
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only 90 minutes from Houston and less than three hours from San |
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Antonio and Dallas/Fort Worth, the county's central location serves |
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as a friendly passage for thousands of travelers, many of whom stay |
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at the county's motels, bed and breakfast establishments, and |
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campgrounds and take advantage of its numerous fine attractions; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Visitors and residents alike enjoy the county's |
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seasonal festivals, such as the Chilifest and Snook Fest in Snook, |
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and the Great Texas LakeFest, which draws thousands of people to |
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Welch Park along scenic Lake Somerville; they also may celebrate |
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the county's Czech heritage at the Kolache Festival, held every |
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September in Caldwell, which was proclaimed the Kolache Capital of |
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Texas by the Texas Legislature in 1989; and |
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WHEREAS, The county's history is on display at the Kraitchar |
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House Museum, the Somerville Area Museum, the Burleson County Czech |
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Heritage Museum, the Caldwell Visitors Center Museum, and the |
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Burleson County Historical Museum, and throughout the county are 66 |
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historical markers and 120 historic cemeteries; there are also the |
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opportunities for recreation afforded by Davidson Creek Park in |
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Caldwell and the city parks in Somerville and Snook; and |
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WHEREAS, Honoring the past as they continue to work toward a |
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brighter future, the residents of Burleson County have many reasons |
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to be proud of the place they call home; 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 March 26, 2013, as Burleson County Day |
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at the State Capitol and extend to the visiting delegation sincere |
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best wishes for an enjoyable and memorable stay in Austin. |