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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Clark County was formed out of Crawford County in
31819; at that time, Clark County included about a third of
4Illinois and extended as far north as the present state of
5Wisconsin; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Clark County was named for Brigadier General
7George Rogers Clark, an officer of the Army of Virginia who
8captured the Northwest Territory from the British during the
9Revolutionary War and was also the older brother of William
10Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition; and
 
11    WHEREAS, In 1821, the northern part of Clark County became
12part of the newly-created Pike County, and the newly-created
13Fayette County took the western part of Clark County; Edgar
14County was created from the northern part of Clark County in
151823; the creation of Coles County occupied additional land
16from western Clark County in 1830; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Clark County includes the communities of Casey,
18Darwin, Marshall, Martinsville, Moonshine, Oilfield,
19Westfield, and West Union and the townships of Auburn, Casey,
20Darwin, Dolson, Douglas, Johnson, Marshall, Martinsville,
21Melrose, Orange, Parker, Wabash, Westfield, and York; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The first Clark County Courthouse was a log house
2in Aurora; in 1823, the county seat was located in Darwin
3Township; in 1838, the county seat was moved to Marshall by a
4"vote of the people"; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Abraham Lincoln tried court cases in the third
6courthouse in Marshall, and reproductions of several of his
7court documents are on display near the current County
8Treasurer's Office; and
 
9    WHEREAS, A variety of activities for families and visitors
10have been planned for the year-long Bicentennial Celebration,
11including historical displays, presentations, and art
12exhibits, as well as a trivia night, a "Cheers to 200 Years"
13dinner, a Music of the Ages program to celebrate over 200 years
14of melodies, a Smithsonian exhibit, "Crossroads: Change in
15Rural America," and the Popcorn Festival in Casey; the
16cemeteries will be marked with information about specific
17headstones, and the public is encouraged to visit the over 40
18cemeteries in the county; and
 
19    WHEREAS, The Bicentennial Celebration activities are being
20sponsored and supported by various communities and
21organizations, including the Clark County Board, the Clark
22County Historical Society, the Casey Historical Society, the
23Marshall Area Chamber of Commerce, the Casey United Methodist

 

 

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1Church, the Casey-Westfield Arts Hall, the Casey Public
2Library, the Smithsonian Institution, the Marshall Public
3Library, the Martinsville Community Center, the Gaslight Art
4Colony, the Casey Chamber of Commerce, the Clark County Retired
5Teachers, the Daughters of the American Revolution, the City of
6Marshall Municipal Band, the Clark County Endowment, and the
7Clark County Development Organization; therefore, be it
 
8    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
9HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
10we congratulate the residents of Clark County on the occasion
11of the county's bicentennial; and be it further
 
12    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
13presented to the Clark County Board and the Clark County
14Historical Society as an expression of our esteem and respect.