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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Family farms and ranches are vital to the economic |
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and cultural prosperity of the Lone Star State, and the |
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Beckendorff-Sword Home Place of Harris County is being recognized |
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for its role in this proud tradition with its induction into the |
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Family Land Heritage Program on October 18, 2023, at a ceremony at |
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the State Capitol; and |
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WHEREAS, Sponsored by the Texas Department of Agriculture, |
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the program honors farms and ranches that have been in continuous |
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agricultural operation by the same family for a century or more; |
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since 1974, TDA has recognized over 5,000 families whose proud |
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Texas legacy has passed from generation to generation and who have |
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served as dedicated stewards of their land; and |
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WHEREAS, The Beckendorff-Sword Home Place traces its origins |
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to April 1922, when Maggie Davis Mansell purchased 160 acres in |
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Harris County; she and her husband, Richard A. Mansell, were the |
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parents of seven children, William Aaron, Robert E. Lee, Bonnie |
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Mae, Jessie, M. L., Richard Davis, and Richard Guy, and they raised |
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swine and peanuts on their land; on December 12, 1940, the Mansell |
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farm was struck by a tornado; tragically, Mrs. Mansell's husband |
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was killed in the incident, and she was seriously injured; in 1967, |
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the property was divided among her children, and Jessie Beckendorff |
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and her husband, Roy, began farming some 32 acres; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1973, Mrs. Beckendorff's children, Leland, |
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Richard, and Ruby, inherited the land; three years later, Richard |
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Beckendorff traded his third of the property to his children, Kay |
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Beckendorff Sword and Randall Beckendorff, who harvested rice and |
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soybean crops before transitioning to hay and cattle production; |
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today, the Katy-area farm continues on under the ownership of |
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Ms. Beckendorff Sword, great-granddaughter of founder Maggie Davis |
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Mansell, who oversees a hay operation; and |
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WHEREAS, For more than 100 years, the Beckendorff-Sword Home |
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Place has played an important role in Harris County while helping to |
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preserve the rich agricultural history of Texas, and it is indeed |
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fitting that Kay Beckendorff Sword and the members of her family be |
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recognized for their outstanding stewardship; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby commemorate the induction |
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of the Beckendorff-Sword Home Place into the Texas Department of |
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Agriculture Family Land Heritage Program and extend to all those |
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associated with the farm sincere best wishes for the future; and, be |
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it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Kay Beckendorff Sword as an expression of high regard |
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by the Texas House of Representatives. |
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Schofield |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 32 was adopted by the House on |
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November 1, 2023, by a non-record vote. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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