HR0595 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0595 LRB094 13832 CSA 48703 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The official Sesquicentennial Celebration of the City of Grayville will take place on August 31, 2005 through September 4, 2005; Grayville was officially chartered in the year of 1855 by the State of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Grayville's location on Interstate 64 along the Wabash River makes it a unique portal to the natural beauty and history of southeastern Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Grayville, population 1,800, is located on the White and Edwards County line, at the mouth of Bonpas Creek on the old channel of the Wabash River; the town's origin dates back to 1810, when Thomas Gray, a Virginian, founded the settlement of Bonpas, located near present-day Grayville; and

WHEREAS, Grayville sprang up around the trading post of James Gray and Robert Walden, founded in 1830, as the tiny settlements of Bonpas, Oxford, and Florence grew together; the town is actually named for its first storekeeper; and

WHEREAS, Over the years, Grayville has proved to be a land of opportunity, inhabited by friendly and hard-working people; and

WHEREAS, The town flourished as a transportation center, first by riverboat and later by railroad, with substantial lumbering and milling interests; and

WHEREAS, Grayville later became known as the "Hub of the Tri-State Oil Basin" following the oil boom of the 1930s and 1940s, boasting a number of oil field businesses; and

WHEREAS, Grayville citizens have always been quick to perform their patriotic duties, counting among many notables the likes of Rear Admiral James M. Helm, hero of the Spanish-American War; and

WHEREAS, The people of Grayville have proven a hardy and resilient lot, enduring depressions and wartime along with the rest of the nation, in addition to local calamities and economic setbacks; and

WHEREAS, Among these same people, hope and optimism flow in abundant supply as they continuously strive for community improvement and to better the lot of their fellow man; and

WHEREAS, In the words of the late sage Herschel Groff, "Everybody has a friend in Grayville"; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate the City of Grayville on the occasion of its Sesquicentennial Celebration; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the City of Grayville.