SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 187
WHEREAS, Residents of Wise County are visiting Austin on
February 17, 2015, 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 United
States 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; and
WHEREAS, Decatur is also home to some of the best
professional rodeo riders in the world; among the champion riders
who live and train in the community are bull riders Silvano
Alves, Mike Lee, Joao Ricardo Vieira, and Ross Johnson, as well
as all-around cowboy Trevor Brazile and wrangler K. C. Jones; the
famed Cooper family of rodeo riders live in Decatur as well,
including the family patriarch and Texas Rodeo Hall of Famer Roy
Cooper; and
WHEREAS, 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; 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 Senate of the State of Texas, 84th
Legislature, hereby recognize February 17, 2015, as Wise County
Day at the State Capitol and extend best wishes to the visiting
delegation for an informative and enjoyable stay in Austin.
Estes
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President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the
above Resolution was adopted by
the Senate on February 17, 2015.
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Secretary of the Senate
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Member, Texas Senate