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HR1091 |
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LRB093 22692 HSS 52351 r |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the |
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| State of Illinois are pleased to congratulate the Village of |
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| Dawson on the occasion of the its 150th anniversary; and
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| WHEREAS, When the Village of Dawson was formed 150 years |
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| ago, Central Illinois was little more than a wilderness of |
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| waving grasses and yellow rosin weed, frequently taller than a |
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| person on horseback; the first price for the land in the Dawson |
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| area was only $1.25 an acre; and
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| WHEREAS, Dawson was located near an old Native American |
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| trail which meandered from Springfield toward Buffalo Hart, |
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| where Native Americans had a camp ground; many first settlers |
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| to the area lived in tents until they could clear the land and |
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| build their homes with the felled trees; and
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| WHEREAS, The Village of Dawson was named after the |
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| Honorable John Dawson; Joseph Ledlie, a civil engineer, arrived |
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| in Illinois in May of 1837; in 1846, he moved to Springfield |
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| and was appointed Deputy County Surveyor; in 1854, Mr. Ledlie |
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| and Thomas Lewis laid out the town of Dawson; and
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| WHEREAS, The first streets in Dawson were dirt roads; John |
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| Billington and Abner Wheeland were the first settlers in |
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| Dawson; Samuel Wolgamont was the first to erect a house; the |
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| original town was comprised of about 30 acres; its various |
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| additions totaled about 85 acres; and
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| WHEREAS, The town was incorporated in 1883; T.A. Bracken |
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| was the first elected mayor, Duncan Ross and Abner Wheeland |
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| were trustees, and A.N. Jones was the first town clerk; and
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| WHEREAS, Notable citizens from the Dawson area are Aaron |
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| Morgan, Jacob Constant, and Strother G. Jones; and
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