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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The Honorable James Collins, Mayor of the City and |
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County of Limerick, is visiting the Texas Capitol on January 16, |
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2019, and this occasion provides a welcome opportunity to pay |
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tribute to this distinguished guest and to celebrate the many |
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contributions that the people of Ireland have made to Texas over the |
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centuries; and |
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WHEREAS, Mayor Collins is visiting Texas to establish a |
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formal relationship between the City of Austin and Limerick City |
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and County Council, and he is accompanied by representatives from |
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the University of Limerick, the Limerick Institute of Technology, |
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the Limerick Enterprise Development Partnership, the Limerick |
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Chamber of Commerce, the Limerick Gaelic Athletic Association, and |
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other senior business and community leaders from Ireland; and |
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WHEREAS, Among the earliest Irish settlers to Texas was Hugo |
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Oconór, who served as governor of Coahuila and Texas from 1767 to |
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1770; in the early 19th century, Irish-born impresarios James |
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McGloin, John McMullen, and James Power settled Irish families in |
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South Texas and along the Gulf Coast, and a number of Irish took up |
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homesteads in Stephen F. Austin's first colony; at least 15 |
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Irish-born soldiers fought at the Alamo, four Irishmen signed the |
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Texas Declaration of Independence, and a hundred fought with Sam |
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Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto; and |
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WHEREAS, In the mid-19th century, new arrivals from Ireland |
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helped to build the physical infrastructure and develop the economy |
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and social fabric of the young state; prominent Irish Texans |
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included Samuel McKinney, an early president of Austin College, and |
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Father Michael Sheehan, who established the first Catholic church |
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in Austin; later in the century, John William Mallet served as the |
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first faculty chair at The University of Texas, and the artist Henry |
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Arthur McArdle specialized in paintings based on Texas history, |
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several of which hang in the State Capitol; today, some two million |
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Texans, representing eight percent of the state's population, claim |
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Irish ancestry and are making their mark in both the private and the |
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public sphere; and |
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WHEREAS, Ireland continues to be a key friend of Texas and a |
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strong economic partner, with trade between the two at record |
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levels; Ireland is among the top 10 foreign investors in the United |
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States, and Irish and Irish-Americans play leading roles in |
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community investment and job creation across the Lone Star State; |
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in recognition of these economic, social, and cultural links, the |
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Irish Government opened a consulate general in Texas in 2015, and it |
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remains the only European Union member with a diplomatic mission |
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located in the state capital; and |
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WHEREAS, The people of Texas share deep, historical bonds |
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with the people of Ireland, and it is a privilege to recognize those |
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ties and the immeasurable contributions of Irish Texans to the |
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growth and vitality of the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas |
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Legislature hereby welcome Mayor James Collins of the City and |
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County of Limerick and the delegation from Ireland to the Texas |
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Capitol and join with them in celebrating the long-standing |
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friendship that exists between Ireland and this State; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Mayor Collins as an expression of high regard by the |
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Texas House of Representatives. |