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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Proud residents of La Salle County are gathering in |
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Austin on April 24, 2025, to celebrate La Salle County Day at the |
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State Capitol; and |
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WHEREAS, Situated in South Texas and traversed by the Nueces |
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and Frio Rivers, the area that is now La Salle County has been |
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inhabited for approximately 11,000 years; in the 1850s, the U.S. |
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Army briefly operated the Fort Ewell outpost on the road from |
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San Antonio to Laredo, and by 1871, some 60 people lived in the |
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nearby town of Guajoco; a number of ranchers moved into the region, |
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and in 1880, the county was formally organized, with Stuart's |
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Rancho near Guajoco designated as its first seat of government; |
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soon after, the International-Great Northern Railroad extended its |
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line into the county, with landowner Joseph Cotulla donating land |
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to encourage the railroad to pass through a townsite he was |
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developing; over the years, Cotulla became the most populous town |
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in the county, and the county seat was eventually moved there; and |
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WHEREAS, During the first decades of the 20th century, the |
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introduction of commercial agriculture ushered in a new period of |
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development, and national advertising campaigns attracted numerous |
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settlers, more than doubling the county's population to over 4,700 |
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by 1910; in addition to cattle ranching, lucrative crops such as |
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onions, peaches, pears, plums, figs, and cotton became staples of |
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the local economy; in 1940, the first oil well was drilled, and |
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production continued to rise in the succeeding decades, with nearly |
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two million barrels of crude oil produced in 1990; and |
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WHEREAS, Today, La Salle County has a population of more than |
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6,600; the majority of the region's residents are concentrated in |
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the cities of Cotulla, which is home to the county's courthouse and |
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airport, and Encinal; since 2008, shale oil production has further |
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bolstered economic conditions; and |
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WHEREAS, Even as they celebrate their unique heritage, the |
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citizens of La Salle County are looking ahead to the opportunities |
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of the future, and they may reflect with pride on their |
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contributions to the story of the Lone Star State; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby recognize April 24, 2025, as La Salle County Day |
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at the State Capitol and extend a warm welcome to the visiting |
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delegation. |
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Guillen |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 757 was adopted by the House on April |
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17, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 133, Nays 7, 2 present, not |
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voting. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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