Full Text of HR0373 103rd General Assembly
HR0373 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate Brown County on the | 4 | | occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Brown County Fair; | 5 | | and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Brown County held its first fair celebration in | 7 | | the fall of 1872, where the present Brown County courthouse | 8 | | yard stands, with the original fair board being comprised of | 9 | | President William T. Hersman, Vice President David K. Watson, | 10 | | Recording Secretary A.K. Lowry, Treasurer William L. Taylor, | 11 | | and Corresponding Secretary Martin Brooks; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, The 1872 Brown County Fair Board selected 15 | 13 | | acres of land in the northeast part of Mount Sterling as the | 14 | | fairgrounds site, where a third-of-a-mile track was built and | 15 | | the first fair was held from October 23 to October 27, 1874; | 16 | | seven more acres of ground were purchased to enlarge the | 17 | | fairgrounds in 1878; with the additional land, the fair's race | 18 | | track was enlarged to its present length of a half-mile; the | 19 | | current fairgrounds include an amphitheater, a floral hall, an | 20 | | implement and grain room, a judges' stand, and 196 stalls; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, The Brown County Fairgrounds were heavily damaged | 22 | | by a tornado on October 14, 1966, leaving only the floral hall |
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| 1 | | and a horse barn still standing in very poor condition, and | 2 | | ultimately, both structures had to be demolished the next | 3 | | year; with the help of the community, the 94th Brown County | 4 | | Fair was held in 1967 with tents and bleachers used to replace | 5 | | the barns and amphitheater; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, The Brown County Fair consecutively ran until | 7 | | 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic put a stop to large events and | 8 | | gatherings, including all fairs; despite this interruption, | 9 | | the fair persists to this day and remains the oldest | 10 | | continuously running county fair in the State of Illinois; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, For the Brown County Fair, horse racing has | 12 | | remained a large part of its celebrations; this year, the fair | 13 | | will have 70 horses present, making it one of the biggest races | 14 | | the fair has ever conducted; the fair also hosts many other | 15 | | events, including a pageant, a rodeo, tractor pulls, a demo | 16 | | derby, and pavilion entertainment; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, The current Brown County Fair Board is comprised | 18 | | of President Ronnie McCaskill, Vice President Tom Parker, | 19 | | Second Vice President Ed Teefey, Secretary Richard Childers, | 20 | | Treasurer Brad Kassing, and members Mike Kropp, Lane Wiese, | 21 | | Rod Buss, Steve Kremer, Luke Metz, Mark Roberts, Doug | 22 | | Fairbanks, Dawn Dunn, and Josh Babb; therefore, be it |
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 2 | | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 3 | | we congratulate Brown County on its 150th fair celebration, | 4 | | and we wish the county continued success in the years to come; | 5 | | and be it further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to the Brown County Fair Board as an expression of | 8 | | our esteem and respect.
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