By: Deuell S.C.R. No. 79
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The year 2009 marks the 80th anniversary of the
death of railroad engineer Alonzo John Wemple, who spent much of his
career in Texas and died here in 1929; and
WHEREAS, Alonzo Wemple was born in Schenectady, New York, on
October 1, 1833, and he spent his entire professional life as a
railroad man, working throughout the United States; during that
time, he was present at many significant historical events of that
era; and
WHEREAS, While working for the Illinois Central Railroad
during the Civil War, Engineer Wemple transported captured
Confederate soldiers to Union prison camps; and
WHEREAS, In 1865, Mr. Wemple joined the elite group of
engineers who piloted the funeral train of President Abraham
Lincoln, which transported Lincoln's body, with stops for viewing,
from Washington, D.C., through Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York,
Ohio, and Indiana, to its final resting place in Springfield,
Illinois; working for the New York Central Railroad at the time, Mr.
Wemple piloted the train on part of its journey, probably from
Schenectady to Troy, New York, although it is possible he was the
engineer who brought the train into Springfield; and
WHEREAS, A few years later, Mr. Wemple was running a switch
engine in Illinois and witnessed the great Chicago fire that
ravaged the city in 1871; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Wemple then moved to Texas, and from 1886 to 1888
he piloted trains on the Texas and Pacific Railway that headed west
from Texarkana; he went on to settle in Bonham, where he piloted
switch engines for many years into the 1920s, and he died in Fort
Worth in 1929 at the age of 95; and
WHEREAS, History is made not only by the deeds of the famous
but also by the accumulated experience of countless individuals,
and although Alonzo Wemple played only a small part, he was a
witness to some of the most important events of his time; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 81st Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby commemorate the life of Alonzo John Wemple and his role in
the history of this state and nation.