H.R. No. 317
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Residents of Wise County are visiting Austin on
February 19, 2019, to celebrate Wise County Day at the State
Capitol; and
WHEREAS, Located in the northwestern part of the state, Wise
County was established 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 area agribusiness; and
WHEREAS, Decatur is also home to some of the best
professional rodeo cowboys and bull riders in the world; among the
champions who live or train in the community are three-time
Professional Bull Riders World Champion Silvano Alves, PBR World
Champions Kaique Pacheco, Guilherme Marchi, and Mike Lee, PBR World
Finals Champions Marco Eguchi and Jose Vitor Leme, and nine-time
National Finals Rodeo finalist steer wrestler K. C. Jones, as well
as the most decorated rodeo cowboy of all time, with 24 world
championships and 14 all-around titles, Trevor Brazile; the famed
Cooper family of rodeo cowboys also lives in Decatur, including
four-time World Champion Tuf Cooper and the patriarch and Texas
Rodeo Hall of Famer Roy Cooper; and
WHEREAS, Visitors are drawn 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 commemorate 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 August; and
WHEREAS, Celebrating their history as they embrace the
opportunities of the future, the citizens of Wise County take great
pride in their community, and it is indeed fitting to honor their
unique contributions to the story of the Lone Star State; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas
Legislature hereby recognize February 19, 2019, as Wise County Day
at the State Capitol and extend best wishes to the visiting
delegation for a meaningful and memorable stay in Austin.
King of Parker
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 317 was adopted by the House on
February 19, 2019, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House