HCR89 - Designating the cannon as the official state gun of Texas.

  89R15489 CW-D     By: Hefner H.C.R. No. 89       CONCURRENT RESOLUTION          WHEREAS, Throughout the long and colorful history of Texas,   the cannon has been an important weapon in the state's fight for   liberty and independence as well as a symbol of the defiance and   determination of its people; and          WHEREAS, The very first conflict of the Texas Revolution, the   Battle of Gonzales, was fought over a cannon; on October 2, 1835,   the 150 Texian rebels at Gonzales refused to surrender their bronze   six-pounder to Mexican dragoons; they pointed instead to the cannon   and declared, "Come and take it!"; during the ensuing battle, this   memorable catchphrase and a painted image of the cannon itself were   raised on a makeshift flag that was created by the women of   Gonzales; the legendary flag has since become one of the iconic   images of the Lone Star State; and          WHEREAS, In 1836, the defenders of the Alamo boasted the   largest artillery contingent west of the Mississippi, an assortment   of 18 to 21 artillery pieces, and after the Mexican army captured   the fort, the cannons were destroyed or abandoned nearby; when the   Alamo was avenged six weeks later by the Texian victory at the   Battle of San Jacinto, the famous Twin Sisters, two six-pounders   that had been donated to the rebellion by the people of Cincinnati,   Ohio, played a decisive role in the defeat of Santa Anna's army; and          WHEREAS, A cannon featured in a memorable incident in the   early years of the Texas Republic; in 1842, Austin residents feared   that President Sam Houston wanted to move the republic's capital   from Austin to Houston, and when he sent Texas Rangers to take the   government's archives, an Austin innkeeper named Angelina Eberly   fired off a cannon on the corner of Sixth Street and Congress   Avenue, rousing the city's population and blowing a hole in the   General Land Office; and          WHEREAS, Today, vintage artillery pieces can be seen at   county courthouses, military installations, and historical sites   across Texas; two 24-pound howitzers made especially for the new   republic by Major General Thomas Jefferson Chambers in the 1830s   guard the south entrance of the Texas Capitol, while two 12-pound   field guns and a wrought iron cannon are also situated on the   Capitol grounds; a cannon reputed to be the "Come and Take It" gun   is on exhibit at the Gonzales Memorial Museum, a cannon used by   Colonel James Fannin at the Battle of Coleto Creek is displayed in a   park in Goliad, and a bronze cannon believed to have been used at   the Alamo is on permanent loan to the Shrine of Texas Liberty by the   San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy; and          WHEREAS, The firing of a cannon continues to be an honored   tradition at celebrations and commemorations across Texas; cannons   help recreate Texas history, such as the fieldpiece fired for   visitors by the "Living History" reenactors at the Fort Davis   National Historical Site; and          WHEREAS, These historic weapons serve as powerful reminders   of our state's epic struggle for freedom, and they further   highlight the unique heritage shared by all those who are proud to   call Texas home; now, therefore, be it          RESOLVED, That the 89th Legislature of the State of Texas   hereby designate the cannon as the official state gun of Texas.