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1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, In 1850, Zachary Taylor was serving as this
3 great nation's twelfth president; and
4 WHEREAS, The Underground Railroad was founded by
5 emancipationist Harriet Tubman and began providing safe
6 passage from slavery to freedom for hundreds of American
7 slaves; and
8 WHEREAS, The United States was undergoing considerable
9 growing pains during an era that became known as the Machine
10 Age; and
11 WHEREAS, 150 years ago, Elizabeth Blackwell began her
12 first year in practice as a medical doctor, the first woman
13 in the United States to practice medicine with a degree
14 earned from an American medical school; and
15 WHEREAS, In Illinois, the first township governments were
16 established in 1850, a century and a half ago, as the Prairie
17 State continued its emergence as one of the most progressive
18 states in the Union; and
19 WHEREAS, In adopting township government as one of its
20 systems of local rule, Illinois voters chose the oldest form
21 of government in existence on the North American continent, a
22 form of government that was brought to the New World by
23 Pilgrims when they landed on the eastern seaboard in 1636;
24 and
25 WHEREAS, Zachary Taylor has long been forgotten by all
26 but the most fervent historians, slavery has been effectively
27 abolished for 135 years, machines are being replaced by
28 high-tech computers, and women in medical school are nearly
29 as prominent as men, but township government continues to
30 serve and thrive; and
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1 WHEREAS, In April, 2000, township government in Illinois
2 celebrates its sesquicentennial anniversary as the government
3 of "the people next door", a local government that continues
4 to serve its constituents with efficiency and dedication;
5 therefore, be it
6 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
7 NINETY-FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
8 we congratulate our local township officials as they
9 celebrate the 150th anniversary of the first township
10 governments in Illinois; and be it further
11 RESOLVED, That we extend to our local township officials
12 our best wishes for continued success in the service of the
13 people who depend on townships for essential government
14 services; and be it further
15 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
16 delivered to the Township Officials of Illinois to serve as a
17 tribute to the sesquicentennial celebration of township
18 government in Illinois.
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