TITLE: Redesignating Bridgeport as the official Stagecoach Capital of Texas for a 10-year period ending in 2033.

SUMMARY: Redesignating Bridgeport as the official Stagecoach Capital of Texas for a 10-year period ending in 2033.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, The stagecoach, a quintessential symbol of the American frontier, played a pivotal role in the founding of the city of Bridgeport and continues to hold special significance to the community to this day; and WHEREAS, Bridgeport traces its beginnings to 1860, when a group organized by William H. Hunt secured a charter from the West Fork Bridge Company to construct a bridge that would allow stagecoaches with the Overland Mail Company to traverse the West Fork of the Trinity River; the shipment of supplies by stagecoaches and wagons became integral to Bridgeport's economy and helped shape the community's development in its early decades; and WHEREAS, With its annual Butterfield Stage Days Festival, Bridgeport has long celebrated its origin as a stop on the historic Butterfield Overland Mail route, which stretched from St. Louis, Missouri, and Memphis, Tennessee, to San Francisco, California; in recent years, the route has garnered increased recognition for its historical importance, and it was officially designated as the Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail in January 2023; and WHEREAS, In addition to Butterfield Stage Days, Bridgeport incorporates the stagecoach into a number of other annual events, and the Bridgeport Visitor Center houses a replica Abbot-Downing Concord coach, a stagecoach originally manufactured in 1827; moreover, the city's efforts as part of the Texas Main Street Program also incorporate the stagecoach as an embodiment of Bridgeport's historic past and frontier spirit; and WHEREAS, Through its legacy as a historic transportation waypoint and its connection to the famed Butterfield Overland Mail route, Bridgeport contributed to the development of our state and nation, and its citizens continue to derive a special sense of pride and identity from their city's association with one of the West's most iconic symbols, the stagecoach; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas hereby redesignate Bridgeport as the official Stagecoach Capital of Texas; and, be it further RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section 391.003(e), Government Code, this designation remain in effect until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is finally passed by the legislature. Stucky President of the Senate Speaker of the House I certify that H.C.R. No. 27 was adopted by the House on April 28, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 1, 2 present, not voting. Chief Clerk of the House I certify that H.C.R. No. 27 was adopted by the Senate on May 21, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. Secretary of the Senate APPROVED: Date Governor