Full Text of HR0887 102nd General Assembly
HR0887 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate the Village of Prairie Du | 4 | | Rocher on its 300th anniversary; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Prairie Du Rocher was founded by French | 6 | | colonialists in 1722 in what was called at the time New France; | 7 | | the village's famous Fort de Chartres was built in 1718 to 1720 | 8 | | by Pierre Dugue de Boisbriand and served as the French seat of | 9 | | government and its chief military installation in Upper | 10 | | Louisiana from 1753 to 1763; due to flooding, the fort would | 11 | | begin to fall apart and would be rebuilt four times throughout | 12 | | its duration, first out of wooden logs then out of limestone, | 13 | | where it still stands to this day; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Prairie Du Rocher was founded for the purpose of | 15 | | supplying critical wheat and corn to New Orleans and other | 16 | | lower Louisiana territory communities; the fort was built to | 17 | | protect and develop France's holdings, which held great | 18 | | promise for economic opportunity at that time; the village and | 19 | | fort experienced constant flooding from the river and survived | 20 | | two wars and countless Indian incursions; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Prairie Du Rocher and the surrounding territory | 22 | | eventually fell under British control after the Seven Years' |
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| 1 | | War, known as the French and Indian War, when France ceded the | 2 | | territory in the Treaty of Paris; King George III's Royal | 3 | | Proclamation of 1763 designated all the land west of the | 4 | | Appalachian Mountains and east of the Mississippi River as an | 5 | | Indian reserve; this proclamation would be one of the causes | 6 | | of the American Revolutionary War; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, During the American Revolutionary War, Prairie Du | 8 | | Rocher was captured by George Rogers Clark and his American | 9 | | soldiers, in which they were able to gain full control of the | 10 | | Northwest Territory, which consisted of Ohio, Indiana, | 11 | | Wisconsin, Michigan, and Illinois; even during these | 12 | | transformational changes, the village continued celebrating | 13 | | its French heritage; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Prairie Du Rocher still celebrates its French | 15 | | roots, from the Creole House showcasing French architecture to | 16 | | Fort de Chartres showcasing French engineering; during New | 17 | | Year's Eve, members of La Guiannee Society wear 18th century | 18 | | costumes; bearing candles, they carol from door to door | 19 | | performing the French folk song "La Guiannee"; this tradition | 20 | | remains unbroken since 1722, even though the custom has long | 21 | | disappeared in France; the village also celebrates | 22 | | "Rendezvous" during the summer at the fort, camping out at the | 23 | | fort and reenacting wars and celebrating the heritage of | 24 | | Indians and French soldiers of the mid-18th century; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Prairie Du Rocher might be small in size and in | 2 | | population, but it will never lose its French customs and the | 3 | | rich traditions that make it uniquely Illinoisan and American; | 4 | | therefore, be it
| 5 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 6 | | HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 7 | | we congratulate the Village of Prairie Du Rocher on its 300th | 8 | | anniversary and wish it many more wonderful years; and be it | 9 | | further
| 10 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 11 | | presented to the Village of Prairie Du Rocher as a symbol of | 12 | | our respect and esteem.
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