[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 16]
[Senate]
[Page 22987]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



               CELEBRATION OF WOOD COUNTY'S BICENTENNIAL

 Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, I am proud to draw the 
attention of Congress and the American people to a very special 
milestone in the State of West Virginia. Wood County, WV, is 
celebrating its bicentennial and a two-hundred year history of 
importance and progress thanks to the continual spirit of its leaders 
and citizens.
  Over the past year, through the Wood County Bicentennial Commission, 
events and activities have taken place to commemorate the county's rich 
history and install a spirit of excitement about the years to come. 
People of all ages, throughout the county, have been involved in 
historic exhibits, contests, and special ways to share the past and 
prepare for the future.
  With this statement in the Congressional Record, I will make this my 
submission to the next major event in the bicentennial celebration--the 
placing of a ``Time Capsule'' at the Wood County Courthouse. With my 
fellow West Virginians in Wood County, I envision the day one hundred 
years from the day this capsule will be stored when a future Senator of 
West Virginia will be presented this piece of history. I am confident 
that in October of 2099, Wood County will continue to be a center of 
economic progress, community spirit and commitment, and other features 
that have defined this corner of the nation for two hundred years 
already.
  Wood County has a long history, in particular, in playing a major 
role in the development of the oil and gas industry in the State and 
the county. through its resources and industrial progress, Wood County 
has been the source of fuel for prosperity and growth way beyond its 
borders.
  The county is also proud to house a significant chemical industry, 
manufacturing the critical components of products world-wide and 
involved in path-breaking research and development. For example, the 
largest DuPont facility in the corporate structure resides outside of 
Parkersburg on the land that George Washington once owned.
  Wood County has tremendous treasures in the form of both its people 
and its material assets. I join its leadership and citizens in 
celebrating this bicentennial year, and playing my part in the time 
Capsule that will reappear another century from now. And I know that 
All Americans wish Wood County continued prosperity and 
progress.

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