[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 45 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 45

Recognizing the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the establishment 
of Fort Michilimackinac on the Straits of Mackinac, and its importance 
            to the people of Michigan and the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 14, 2015

Mr. Benishek (for himself, Mrs. Lawrence, Mrs. Miller of Michigan, Mr. 
    Walberg, Mr. Moolenaar, Mr. Levin, and Mr. Trott) submitted the 
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Recognizing the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the establishment 
of Fort Michilimackinac on the Straits of Mackinac, and its importance 
            to the people of Michigan and the United States.

Whereas the year 2015 marks the tricentennial of the establishment of Fort 
        Michilimackinac on the Straits of Mackinac;
Whereas King Louis XV of France ordered the fortification of the Straits of 
        Mackinac in order to stabilize Native American relations and prevent 
        English intrusions from Hudson's Bay;
Whereas Constant Le Marchand de Lignery arrived with 20 French troops in the 
        summer of 1715 and constructed Fort Michilimackinac near an Odawa 
        village and the recently reestablished mission of St. Ignace de 
        Michilimackinac;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac served as the staging point for military 
        expeditions to stabilize the fur trade throughout the 1720s and 1730s;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac developed into the major depot for the northwestern 
        fur trade;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac was the site of large Indian councils as the French 
        built alliances to fight the British;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac was transferred from France to Great Britain at the 
        end of the Seven Years' War following the fatal blow to New France at 
        Quebec in 1759;
Whereas Native Americans of the Great Lakes region were dissatisfied with 
        British control and staged an uprising in the summer of 1763, resulting 
        in a successful attack and capture of Fort Michilimackinac on June 2 
        using the ruse of a baggatiway game;
Whereas after reestablishing peace, the British fostered alliances with Native 
        American nations, hosting councils at Fort Michilimackinac;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac continued as the main fur trade center of the upper 
        Great Lakes under British control;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac additionally served as a critical logistical and 
        administrative center for British soldiers and closely allied Native 
        American war parties combatting rebel forces during the American 
        Revolution;
Whereas fearing an attack by American rebels, the British relocated the fort to 
        nearby, more defensible, Mackinac Island in 1779-1781;
Whereas the site of the fort was recognized by historians throughout the 
        nineteenth century as a prominent historical site of the Old Northwest, 
        and was preserved as a municipal park from 1857 onward;
Whereas the park was gifted to the State of Michigan and placed under the care 
        of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission and designated as 
        Michigan's second State park in 1909;
Whereas the Park Commission began a professional archaeological program in 1959 
        that has continued every summer since, resulting in a wealth of research 
        on the history of Great Lakes fur trade and the reconstruction of the 
        fort;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac has hosted nearly 8,000,000 visitors since it 
        opened as a historic site in 1960;
Whereas Fort Michilimackinac was designated a National Historic Landmark in 
        1961;
Whereas located at the foot of the mighty Mackinac Bridge, Fort Michilimackinac 
        continues to function as the crossroads of the Great Lakes, providing 
        untold educational and economic benefits to the people of Michigan; and
Whereas in this 300th year since the founding of Fort Michilimackinac, the Park 
        Commission will commemorate the history of the site in a series of 
        celebrations beginning May 30, 2015: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress recognizes the significance of the establishment of Fort 
Michilimackinac and its importance to the people of Michigan and the 
United States on the occasion of its tricentennial.
                                 <all>