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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Proud residents are joining together to celebrate |
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Austin County Day at the State Capitol on April 24, 2025; and |
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WHEREAS, Located between the Post Oak Savannah and the |
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Coastal Prairie regions, Austin County was one of the first |
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Anglo-American colonies created in the 1820s; the county gets its |
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name from Stephen F. Austin, who not only founded the colonies in |
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this area but also had unprecedented influence on Texas history; |
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known as the Father of Texas, Stephen F. Austin served as an |
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empresario and provided land grants to the Old Three Hundred, who |
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were the first families to settle in the colony that now includes |
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modern-day Austin County; and |
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WHEREAS, San Felipe de Austin was one of the first towns |
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founded in the colony and was named in honor of Saint Stephen and |
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Stephen F. Austin; in 1824, the General Land Office opened in |
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San Felipe de Austin, which served as the capital of the |
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Anglo-American settlements in Texas; furthermore, the town hosted |
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the Conventions of 1832 and 1833 prior to the Texas Revolution; |
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Austin County was officially created by the Constitution of 1836, |
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with San Felipe serving as the county seat until 1848, when the |
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county government moved to the community of Bellville; and |
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WHEREAS, Austin County experienced multiple waves of |
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settlement, with Anglo-Americans arriving first to Austin's colony |
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and settling on the fertile land around the Brazos River and its |
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tributaries; eventually, Germans and Czechs settled the land, |
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leading to the development of many towns including Bellville, |
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Wallis, Sealy, and Industry; these cultural influences are felt |
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throughout the communities, with enrichments from Mexican |
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immigrants, the largest foreign-born group to settle in Austin |
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County in the 20th century; other influences came from African |
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Americans, who further contributed to the county's development and |
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the creation of many religious and social institutions; and |
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WHEREAS, Austin County has fostered an environment where |
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publications have flourished, like the Texas Gazette and the Texas |
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Register; the Texas Gazette was created by Godwin Brown Cotton in |
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1829 at San Felipe and was the first newspaper in the State of |
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Texas; the Texas Register also started in Austin County at |
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San Felipe in 1835 and eventually became the official voice of the |
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government of the Republic of Texas; and |
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WHEREAS, Austin County also was the founding place of the |
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Texas postal system and the Committee of Safety in San Felipe; the |
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latter would defend Anglo-Americans from Indian tribes and would |
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eventually become the Texas Rangers; and |
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WHEREAS, Today, Austin County has flourished into a |
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successful county where its economy thrives as a hub for |
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transportation, agribusiness, tourism, and manufacturing; many |
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towns have prospered in this county, including Cat Spring, Shelby, |
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New Ulm, and Frydek, and it now has a total population of over |
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31,000 residents; and |
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WHEREAS, Honoring their history as they embrace the |
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opportunities of the future, the citizens of Austin County may |
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indeed take great pride in their unique contributions to the story |
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of the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby recognize April 24, 2025, as Austin County Day |
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at the State Capitol and extend a warm welcome to the visiting |
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delegation. |