| 1 | 1 | | H.R. No. 1188 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, Proud residents of Waller County are marking the |
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| 6 | 6 | | 150th anniversary of their county's founding on May 5, 2023; and |
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| 7 | 7 | | WHEREAS, Encompassing 514 square miles of land in the lower |
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| 8 | 8 | | coastal plain of southeast Texas, Waller County combines rolling |
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| 9 | 9 | | timber in the north with coastal prairie in the south; when the |
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| 10 | 10 | | state legislature established the county in 1873, by carving out |
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| 11 | 11 | | portions of Austin and Grimes Counties, Hempstead was designated as |
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| 12 | 12 | | the seat of government; the creation of the Houston and Texas |
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| 13 | 13 | | Central Railway spurred the growth of the county during the early |
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| 14 | 14 | | years of its existence, and railway companies were involved in the |
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| 15 | 15 | | development of Hempstead as well as the town of Brookshire; and |
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| 16 | 16 | | WHEREAS, The county's economy was largely driven by cotton |
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| 17 | 17 | | production, before it pivoted with the discovery of oil in the |
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| 18 | 18 | | 1930s; in more recent years, it has benefited from being at the |
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| 19 | 19 | | nexus of two major transportation corridors, with U.S. Route 290 |
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| 20 | 20 | | leading from Austin to Houston and Interstate 10 connecting Houston |
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| 21 | 21 | | to San Antonio and El Paso; and |
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| 22 | 22 | | WHEREAS, Waller County boasts a diverse population of nearly |
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| 23 | 23 | | 60,000 people, a number that has grown steadily since the mid-20th |
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| 24 | 24 | | century; the area offers citizens a small-town, rural way of life, |
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| 25 | 25 | | while still being within commuting distance of Houston; its natural |
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| 26 | 26 | | beauty is enhanced by the abundance of bluebonnets that bloom there |
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| 27 | 27 | | in the spring, and residents and visitors alike enjoy such annual |
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| 28 | 28 | | events as the Waller County Fair, the Hempstead Watermelon |
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| 29 | 29 | | Festival, and the Katy Rice Festival; and |
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| 30 | 30 | | WHEREAS, Celebrating their history as they work to build an |
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| 31 | 31 | | even brighter future, the people of Waller County may indeed take |
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| 32 | 32 | | great pride in the role their community continues to play in the |
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| 33 | 33 | | story of the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it |
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| 34 | 34 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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| 35 | 35 | | Legislature hereby commemorate the sesquicentennial of Waller |
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| 36 | 36 | | County and extend to the county's residents sincere best wishes for |
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| 37 | 37 | | the future. |
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| 38 | 38 | | Kitzman |
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| 39 | 39 | | ______________________________ |
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| 40 | 40 | | Speaker of the House |
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| 41 | 41 | | I certify that H.R. No. 1188 was adopted by the House on April |
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| 42 | 42 | | 28, 2023, by a non-record vote. |
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| 43 | 43 | | ______________________________ |
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| 44 | 44 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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