83R6827 LUC-D
By: King of Parker H.R. No. 340
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Residents of Wise County are visiting Austin on
February 12, 2013, to celebrate Wise County Day at the State
Capitol; and
WHEREAS, Located in the northwestern part of the state, Wise
County has a varied terrain, much of which has proven to be fertile
farmland; the first known inhabitants of the area in historic times
were the Wichita, followed by groups of Caddo, Delaware, and
Kichai; Anglo settlers arrived in the 1850s, and on January 23,
1856, the county was carved out of Cooke County by legislative act
and named in honor of Henry A. Wise, a U.S. congressman from
Virginia who had supported the annexation of Texas; at the same time
as it created Wise County, the legislature decreed that its county
seat be established within five miles of the county's center, and
two years later that new community became known as Decatur, after
the naval hero Stephen Decatur; and
WHEREAS, The eastern fork of the Chisholm Trail passed near
Decatur during the latter half of the 19th century, and the town
prospered as a shipping point and market for local farmers; today,
it is a center for natural gas production, specialty carbon and
graphite manufacturing, and health care, as well as marketing and
processing for Wise County agribusiness; visitors are drawn to
Decatur by such historic attractions as the Waggoner Mansion, the
Wise County Heritage Museum, the Wise County Veterans Park, and the
pink granite Wise County Courthouse, which was completed in 1896;
and
WHEREAS, Wise County is home to a variety of recreational
opportunities provided by Lake Bridgeport, Eagle Mountain Lake, and
the Caddo-Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands; in addition, area
residents celebrate their heritage with the annual Butterfield
Stage Days Festival in May, the Wise County Old Settlers Reunion in
July, and the Chisholm Trail Days and Western Heritage Festival in
September; and
WHEREAS, The citizens of Wise County may take justifiable
pride in their corner of Texas and know that it has contributed
immensely to the development and vitality of the Lone Star State;
now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas
Legislature hereby recognize February 12, 2013, as Wise County Day
at the State Capitol and extend best wishes to the visiting
delegation for an informative and enjoyable stay in Austin.