III 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 503 

Commemorating the tricentennial of the City of San Antonio, Texas. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 10, 2018 

Mr. CORNYN (for himself and Mr. CRUZ) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Commemorating the tricentennial of the City of San Antonio, 

Texas. 

Whereas in 1718, the Mission San Antonio de Valero, the 

Presidio San Antonio de Bejar, and the Villa de Bejar 

were founded in the area that would become the City of 

San Antonio (referred to in this preamble as ‘‘San Antonio’’); 

Whereas in 1821, San Antonio became a part of the Mexican 

empire; 

Whereas in the Battle of the Alamo in 1836, Mexican forces 

led by General Lopez de Santa Anna stormed the Alamo 

and more than 200 United States colonists, Texians, and 

Tejanos died defending the future State of Texas; 


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•SRES 503 IS 

Whereas in 1836, the new government of the State of Texas 

formed the county government of Bexar, and made San 

Antonio the county seat of Bexar; 

Whereas in 1837, by action of the City Council, Ciudad San 

Antonio de Bejar was officially renamed the City of San 

Antonio; 

Whereas the United States Army post at San Antonio was 

established in 1865, and is known today as Fort Sam 

Houston; 

Whereas in 1877, the first passenger train of the renamed 

Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio railroad arrived 

in San Antonio; 

Whereas Brooks Air Force Base was built in 1917 in San 

Antonio and operated until closure in 2011; 

Whereas Kelly Field, also known as Kelly Air Force Base, 

was founded in 1917 and operated until 2001, making it 

the oldest continuously operating air base in the United 

States; 

Whereas in 1931, Randolph Air Force Base began operating 

as a training facility in San Antonio and is now part of 

Joint Base San Antonio; 

Whereas in 1941, Lackland Air Force Base began operating 

as a training facility in San Antonio and is now part of 

Joint Base San Antonio; 

Whereas in 1968, San Antonio hosted a 6-month international exposition known as ‘‘HemisFair ’68’’, which 

welcomed more than 6,000,000 visitors from across the 

world; 

Whereas in 1973, San Antonio received the first and only 

major professional sports team of the city, the San AntoVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:18 May 11, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR503.IS SR503

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•SRES 503 IS 

nio Spurs, which has won a total of 5 National Basketball Association championships; 

Whereas in 1987, Pope John Paul II became the first and 

only pontiff to visit the State of Texas and San Antonio; 

Whereas in 1992, the United States, Mexico, and Canada 

signed the North American Free Trade Agreement in 

San Antonio; 

Whereas in 2017, the United Nations Educational, Scientific 

and Cultural Organization inscribed the 5 Spanish colonial missions in San Antonio as a World Heritage Site; 

Whereas San Antonio is also called the Alamo City, the Mission City, and the River City, and was officially 

trademarked ‘‘Military City, USA’’ in 2017; 

Whereas San Antonio has been home to several notable individuals, including President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 

President Lyndon B. Johnson, President Theodore Roosevelt, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Congressman 

David Crockett, Congressman Garlington Jerome Sutton, 

General Douglas MacArthur, General Jimmy Doolittle, 

Colonel James Bowie, Lieutenant Colonel Ed White, 

Master Sergeant Raul Perez Benavidez, Charles Lindbergh, Carol Burnett, Joan Crawford, Tommy Lee Jones, 

Johnny Cash, Rosita Fernandez, Santiago Jimenez, 

Santiago Jimenez Jr., Flaco Jimenez, and Secretary 

Henry Cisneros; 

Whereas San Antonio hosts one of the largest annual 

marches in the United States for Martin Luther King Jr. 

Day, with nearly 300,000 participants; 

Whereas San Antonio is the seventh largest city in the 

United States based on population; 


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•SRES 503 IS 

Whereas San Antonio contributes to the cultural life and historical understanding of the State of Texas through 

events such as— 

(1) Fiesta; 

(2) Luminaria; 

(3) the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo; 

(4) the Armed Forces River Parade; and 

(5) the Texas Folk Life Festival; and 

Whereas during the first week of May, 2018— 

(1) San Antonio will honor and celebrate the tricentennial anniversary of the city; and 

(2) each day of that week will have a specific focus, 

including a Day of Reflection, History & Education Day, 

Founders Day, Arts for All Day, Legacy Day, and Military Appreciation Day: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates 2018 as the year of the ‘‘San 

3 Antonio Tricentennial’’; and 

4 (2) honors the history and founding of the City 

5 of San Antonio, Texas. 

Æ 


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