Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HR142 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R10982 BPG-D
2	2	By: Kitzman H.R. No. 142
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4	4
5	5	R E S O L U T I O N
6	6	WHEREAS, February 20, 2023, marks the 150th anniversary of
7	7	the death of the Honorable Louis Franke; and
8	8	WHEREAS, Born Ludwig Carl Ferdinand Francke in 1818, Louis
9	9	Franke grew up in the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, which is now
10	10	part of Germany; he studied music before earning a law degree from
11	11	the University of Jena; in the mid-1840s, he joined the wave of his
12	12	countrymen emigrating for the freedom and opportunity of the United
13	13	States; he arrived at Galveston, and during the Mexican War, he
14	14	served with the Texas Rangers; in 1853, he became a naturalized
15	15	citizen and formally adopted an anglicized version of his name;
16	16	that same year, he wed the former Bernhardine Helene Friederike
17	17	Dorothea Romberg; and
18	18	WHEREAS, Mr. and Mrs. Franke began their life together on a
19	19	farm near Cedar but soon bought land from her family in the Black
20	20	Jack Springs community in Fayette County; for several years, the
21	21	couple also spent time at Independence, where Mr. Franke taught
22	22	music, French, and German at the old Baylor College; after 1959, he
23	23	focused on his farm while practicing law on the side; he served on
24	24	the local grand jury and as a county commissioner and overseer of
25	25	roads; becoming active in the local Lutheran community, the Frankes
26	26	donated land for the establishment of an Evangelical-Lutheran
27	27	academy; and
28	28	WHEREAS, At the close of Reconstruction, in 1872, Mr. Franke
29	29	was elected to the House of Representatives from what was then
30	30	District 26, covering Bastrop and Fayette Counties; he served as
31	31	chair of the Immigration Committee and as a member of the committees
32	32	on Agriculture and Stock Raising, Redistricting, and Public Lands
33	33	and Land Office; near the end of the session, on February 19, 1873,
34	34	at seven in the evening, Mr. Franke was leaving the old Capitol
35	35	Building to head to his committee meeting at the Land Office when he
36	36	was brutally attacked by two men, who made off with the $260 in pay
37	37	he had just received; although help came almost immediately, he had
38	38	sustained a grave head injury and passed away at 3:30 the following
39	39	morning; and
40	40	WHEREAS, Stunned legislators in both parties deeply mourned
41	41	the loss of a widely admired colleague; the expenses of his burial
42	42	were borne by the government, and as he lay in state in the Hall of
43	43	Representatives, the entire legislature attended the funeral
44	44	service; his coffin was conveyed down Congress Avenue to the train
45	45	station on Pecan Street in a long procession that included the
46	46	lawmakers, the governor, the Supreme Court, a military escort,
47	47	heads of departments, city fire companies and other societies, a
48	48	band, and citizens in carriages, on horseback, and on foot; a
49	49	deputation of representatives accompanied his remains on the final
50	50	journey home to his family; and
51	51	WHEREAS, Widowed at a young age, Mrs. Franke was left to
52	52	raise eight children, the youngest still an infant; she proved a
53	53	woman of steely fortitude, and with astute business sense and the
54	54	help of her industrious offspring, she expanded the land holdings
55	55	of the family and secured their prosperity; and
56	56	WHEREAS, Louis Franke exemplified the boldness, resilience,
57	57	and community spirit of the early Texans, and his tragic and
58	58	untimely death robbed the state of a born leader and true public
59	59	servant; now, therefore, be it
60	60	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas
61	61	Legislature hereby commemorate the 150th anniversary of the death
62	62	of State Representative Louis Franke.