Texas HR 222: Recognizing February 28, 2023, as Texas Pharmacy Day at the State Capitol.

Bill Text

89(R) HR 222 - Enrolled version - Bill Text

  

  

  
 H.R. No. 222

  

  

   

 R E S O L U T I O N

   

        WHEREAS, February 24, 2026, marks the 190th anniversary of 

  

 Lieutenant Colonel William Barrett Travis's letter from the Alamo, 

  

 providing a fitting opportunity to acknowledge the enduring legacy 

  

 of his request for aid during the fight for Texas independence; and

  

        WHEREAS, In 1836, Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis led 

  

 150 Texas rebels in their brave stand at the Alamo against the 

  

 vastly greater forces of Mexican General Antonio López de Santa 

  

 Anna; on February 24, the second day of the siege, Colonel Travis 

  

 penned a letter addressed "to the people of Texas and all Americans 

  

 in the world," conveying that his valiant band was surrounded by a 

  

 thousand enemy soldiers demanding surrender, and he warned that the 

  

 fort was under continual bombardment and that enemy numbers were 

  

 increasing; calling urgently for reinforcements, he acknowledged 

  

 the grave peril of the situation, closing with the defiant words 

  

 "Victory or Death"; and

  

        WHEREAS, Colonel Travis entrusted the letter to Captain 

  

 Albert Martin of Gonzales; the following day, Captain Martin passed 

  

 the dispatch on to Lancelot Smither, who departed for San Felipe on 

  

 the cold and windy evening; Mr. Smither delivered the missive to 

  

 the town's citizens committee within 40 hours; although several 

  

 copies were made, and the letter was published in newspapers as 

  

 early as March 2, little help reached the defenders of the Alamo; 

  

 General Santa Anna's troops broke through on March 6, and Colonel 

  

 Travis died alongside all of his men; and

  

        WHEREAS, Shortly after the Texas Revolution, the original 

  

 letter was presented to the Travis family; a great-grandson of 

  

 Colonel Travis, John G. Davidson, sold the letter for $85 in 1893 to 

  

 the Texas Department of Agriculture, Insurance, Statistics, and 

  

 History; this was the predecessor agency to the Texas State Library 

  

 and Archives Commission, which maintains stewardship of the 

  

 significant artifact today; and

  

        WHEREAS, One of the most famous epistles in American history, 

  

 the William B. Travis letter is a testament to the love of liberty 

  

 and spirit of sacrifice that exemplified the Texas Revolution, and 

  

 the noble phrase "Victory or Death" will continue to inspire Texans 

  

 in generations to come; now, therefore, be it

  

        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas 

  

 Legislature hereby commemorate the 190th anniversary of Lieutenant 

  

 Colonel William B. Travis's letter from the Alamo and commend the 

  

 Texas State Library and Archives Commission for its preservation; 

  

 and, be it further

  

        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 

  

 prepared for the commission as an expression of high regard by the 

   

 Texas House of Representatives.

  

   

 Cain

   

   

 ______________________________

   

 Speaker of the House     

  

   

        I certify that H.R. No. 222 was adopted by the House on May 

   

 23, 2025, by a non-record vote.

   

   

 ______________________________

   

 Chief Clerk of the House