H. Res. 122

In the House of Representatives, U.S.,

March 11, 2003.

Whereas Ohio residents will celebrate 2003 as the 200th anniversary of Ohio’s admission into the Union;

Whereas Ohio was the 17th State to be admitted to the

Union and was the first State to be created from the

Northwest Territory;

Whereas ‘‘Ohio’’ is derived from the Iroquois word meaning

‘‘great river’’, referring to the Ohio River which forms

the southern boundary and a portion of the eastern

boundary of the State;

Whereas Ohio was the site of battles of the American Indian

Wars, French and Indian Wars, Revolutionary War, the

War of 1812, and the Civil War;

Whereas in the nineteenth century, Ohio, a free state, was an

important stop on the Underground Railroad as a destination for more than 100,000 individuals escaping slavery and seeking freedom;

Whereas Ohio, which is known as ‘‘The Mother of Presidents’’, has given eight United States presidents to the

Nation, including William Henry Harrison, Ulysses S.

Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, William H. Taft, and

Warren G. Harding;
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Whereas Ohio inventors, including Thomas Edison (incandescent light bulb), Orville and Wilbur Wright (first in

flight), Henry Timken (roller bearings), Charles Kettering (automobile starter), Charles Goodyear (process of

vulcanizing rubber), Garrett Morgan (traffic light), and

Roy Plunkett (Teflon), created the basis for modern living as we know it;

Whereas Ohio, which is also known as ‘‘The Birthplace of

Aviation’’, has been home to 24 astronauts, including

John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, and Judith Resnik;

Whereas Ohio has a rich sports tradition and has produced

many sports legends, including Annie Oakley, Jesse

Owens, Cy Young, Jack Nicklaus, and Nancy Lopez;

Whereas Ohio has produced many distinguished writers including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Paul Laurence Dunbar,

Toni Morrison, and James Thurber;

Whereas the agriculture and agribusiness industry is and has

long been the number one industry in Ohio, contributing

$73,000,000,000 annually to Ohio’s economy and employing 1 in 6 Ohioans, and that industry’s tens of thousands of Ohio farmers and 14,000,000 acres of Ohio

farmland feed the people of the State, the Nation, and

the world;

Whereas the enduring manufacturing economy of Ohio is responsible for 1⁄4 of Ohio’s Gross State Product, provides

over one million well-paying jobs to Ohioans, exports

$26,000,000,000 in products to 196 countries, and provides over $1,000,000,000 in tax revenues to local schools

and governments;

Whereas Ohio is home to over 140 colleges and universities

which have made significant contributions to the intellec-
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tual life of the State and Nation, and continued investment in education is Ohio’s promise to future economic

development in the ‘‘knowledge economy’’ of the 21st

century;

Whereas, from its inception, Ohio has been a prime destination for immigrants, and the rich cultural and ethnic heritage that has been interwoven into the spirit of the people of Ohio and that enriches Ohio’s communities and the

quality of life of its residents is both a tribute to, and

representative of, the Nation’s diversity;

Whereas Ohio began celebrations commemorating its bicentennial on March 1, 2003, in Chillicothe, the first capital

of Ohio; and

Whereas the bicentennial celebrations will include Inventing

Flight in Dayton (celebrating the centennial of flight),

Tall Ships on Lake Erie, Tall Stacks on the Ohio River,

Red, White, and Bicentennial Boom in Columbus, and

the Bicentennial Wagon Train across the State: Now,

therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives

recognizes—

(1) the bicentennial of the admission of Ohio into

the Union; and
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(2) the residents of Ohio for their important contributions to the economic, social, and cultural development of the United States.

Attest:

Clerk.