HR1031 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1031 LRB100 21769 MST 39411 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Ulysses S. Grant became a resident of Illinois in 1860, settling in Galena with his family, a community he called home when elected president in 1868; and

WHEREAS, Grant became the second of now four United States presidents with Illinois roots; and

WHEREAS, The U.S. Grant Home in Galena is an Illinois State Historic Site, a site on the National Register of Historic Places, and has been maintained by the State of Illinois since 1931; and

WHEREAS, Following his service in the United States Army, Grant joined fellow Galena residents who traveled to Springfield in 1861 to volunteer for military service with the Union Army; this led to Grant being named colonel of the 21st Illinois Infantry, thereby beginning his now famous rise up the ranks of the Union Army; and

WHEREAS, President Abraham Lincoln commissioned Grant as lieutenant general in 1864, becoming, at that time, only the second three-star general in United States history; and

WHEREAS, On April 9, 1865, General Grant famously accepted the surrender of Robert E. Lee of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Courthouse, thereby effectively ending our nation's civil war; and

WHEREAS, In 1866, General Grant was commissioned as our nation's first-ever four-star general; and

WHEREAS, On May 24, 1868, General Grant accepted the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States; and

WHEREAS, General Grant was elected the 18th President of the United States on November 3, 1868; at the age of 46, he became at that point the youngest-ever president by securing 214 of 294 electoral votes and carrying 26 of 34 states; and

WHEREAS, On November 5, 1872, President Grant was elected to a second term as president, securing 286 of 352 electoral votes and carrying 31 of 37 states; and

WHEREAS, During his time in office, President Grant was a champion for the rights of African Americans by working to protect the civil rights of freed slaves; he fought against the rise of terrorist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan; he enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1875, and he advocated for the passage of the 15th Amendment which was approved during his presidency, thereby granting African-American men the right to vote; and

WHEREAS, President Grant became the first president to discuss the rights of Native Americans during an inaugural address by promising "proper treatment of the original occupants of this land - the Indians"; he also appointed General Ely S. Parker, a member of the Seneca Nation, as the first Native American Commissioner of Indian Affairs; and

WHEREAS, President Grant enacted legislation designating Yellowstone as our first national park, created the Justice Department, instituted civil service reforms reducing the negative effects of patronage, and peacefully settled longstanding disputes with England which cemented our two countries as allies; and

WHEREAS, More than one million people attended President Grant's 1886 funeral in New York, including three U.S. presidents, and both Union and Confederate generals served as pallbearers; and

WHEREAS, During the early 20th Century, President Grant's reputation was systematically sullied by Confederate sympathizers and white supremacists, doing much damage to his legacy of military success and his reputation as a president who did as much to advance the cause of freedom as almost any other American; and

WHEREAS, November 3, 2018 will be the 150th anniversary of U.S. Grant's election as President of the United States; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize the tremendous accomplishments of Ulysses S. Grant during his service to the United States as both president and military officer; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we declare November 3, 2018 as President Ulysses S. Grant Day in the State of Illinois in honor of his achievements and in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of his election as president; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we encourage the U.S. Grant Home State Historic Site and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to plan and carry out appropriate activities to commemorate the sesquicentennial of Grant's election as president.