[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 6 (Wednesday, January 16, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E28]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   TRIBUTE TO HARDIN COUNTY, TEXAS, AND ITS RESIDENTS ON THEIR 150TH 
                              ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KEVIN BRADY

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 16, 2008

  Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor and 
congratulate Hardin County, Texas, and its residents on their 150th 
anniversary.
  Sixty-eight miles northeast of Houston and 54 miles from the Gulf of 
Mexico, Hardin County's 897 square miles are covered by pine and 
hardwood forests. This puts Hardin County in the middle of the 
beautiful Big Thicket of southeast Texas and the larger east Texas 
Timberlands region. Natural resources are still a main driver of the 
local economy and timber, oil, gas, sand, gravel, and salt domes are 
found within the county.
  In 1836 the area was split between the jurisdictions of Liberty and 
Jefferson counties. Following the region's population growth, in 1858 
the legislature established a new county. The new county was named in 
honor of the Hardin family from nearby Liberty County; the county seat 
was also to be designated as Hardin. When the Sabine and East Texas 
Railroad bypassed Hardin in favor of the newly established railroad 
town, Kountze was made the new county seat.
  Long ago, American Indians in the region began to visit what they 
called Medicine Lake, seeking the healing powers of the mud and mineral 
water in what we today call Sour Lake. Oil was discovered in 1901 
around Sour Lake and quickly became the lifeblood of the area, 
production later reached 7 million barrels a day. This same discovery 
allowed for the creation of the Texas Company, better known as Texaco. 
Today, Hardin County has grown to over 50,000 residents.
  Immigrants from Ireland, Germany, France, and other countries were 
drawn to Hardin County for its oil, timber, livestock and agricultural 
products. This rich diversity contributed to economic growth and the 
rich culture Hardin County still enjoys today.
  Today, Hardin County is one of the fastest growing areas of southeast 
Texas--there is a bright future of growth and prosperity. Families are 
choosing to live in Hardin County because of its outstanding schools 
and traditional sense of community. Hardin County is the type of place 
where neighbors check in on each other and catch up at high school 
football games. Local leaders through out the county have worked hard 
to maintain Hardin County's quality of life. These men and women are 
following in the footsteps of early settlers and the county's founders 
to make Hardin County a better place for hardworking men and women who 
call it home.
  Madam Speaker, it is an honor to represent this community in the U.S. 
House of Representatives and I urge you to join me in congratulating 
Hardin County on its sesquicentennial birthday.

                          ____________________