[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Pages 6166-6167]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 15--COMMEMORATING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF 
 THE 1915 PANAMA-CALIFORNIA EXPOSITION AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF BALBOA 
                     PARK IN SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself and Mrs. Boxer) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources:

                            S. Con. Res. 15

       Whereas in 1868, San Diego civic leaders set aside 1,400 
     acres of land, which became known as City Park;
       Whereas in 1910, in preparation for the Panama-California 
     Exposition hosted by San Diego, that park was named ``Balboa 
     Park'' in honor of Spanish-born Vasco Nunez de Balboa, the 
     first European to see the Pacific Ocean while exploring in 
     present-day Panama;
       Whereas the 1915-1916 Panama-California Exposition 
     commemorated the opening of the Panama Canal and was the 
     first of two expositions that added to Balboa Park's dramatic 
     architecture;
       Whereas in 1914, John D. and Adolph Spreckels donated the 
     Spreckels Organ, one of the world's largest outdoor pipe 
     organs, to the City of San Diego for the Panama-California 
     Exposition, and this unique organ contains 4,530 pipes 
     ranging in length from the size of a pencil to 32 feet and is 
     housed in an ornate vaulted structure with highly embellished 
     gables;
       Whereas the San Diego Zoo was established in Balboa Park at 
     the close of the Exposition in the fall of 1916, when Dr. 
     Harry Wegeforth, a local physician, conceived the idea of 
     starting a zoo after hearing the roar of a lion, one of the 
     few wild animals displayed in cages at the Exposition, and 
     the Balboa Zoo is now home to more than 3,700 rare and 
     endangered animals representing over 660 species and 
     subspecies and a prominent botanical collection with more 
     than 700,000 plants--a world famous conservation organization 
     where visitors view exotic animals in habitat environments;
       Whereas in 1926, the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, now 
     The San Diego Museum of Art, opened to the public, and its 
     renowned holdings include a fine selection of European old 
     masters, 19th and 20th-century American art, an encyclopedic 
     Asian collection, and growing collections of contemporary and 
     Latin American art;
       Whereas in 1933, the San Diego Natural History Museum 
     opened within the park and is housed in a building created 
     with Works Project Administration assistance;
       Whereas in 1935-1936, Balboa Park hosted its second major 
     exposition, the California Pacific International Exposition, 
     which helped boost the local economy during the depression 
     and added additional structures and landscaping, many of 
     which now host cultural institutions and events;
       Whereas the internationally acclaimed, Tony Award-winning 
     Old Globe, one of the most esteemed regional theaters in the 
     country, was founded within Balboa Park in 1935, and now 
     boasts three unique venues: the historic Old Globe Theatre 
     (built for the 1935 exposition and expanded and rebuilt in 
     1978), the intimate Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, and the 
     outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre;
       Whereas Balboa Park helped support military efforts in 
     World War I and World War II, when most of the buildings on 
     the Central Mesa became adjuncts to the adjacent Naval 
     hospital, the House of Hospitality became a nurses' 
     dormitory, the Lily Pond became a rehabilitation pool, and 
     400 hospital beds were placed in the San Diego Fine Arts 
     Gallery;
       Whereas on December 25, 1946, the California Tower carillon 
     was installed; whose chimes are still heard across the park 
     on every quarter hour;
       Whereas in 1978, two devastating fires struck Balboa Park, 
     resulting in the destruction of the Electric Building, 
     including the San Diego Aerospace Museum collection, and the 
     1935 Old Globe Theatre, both of which were rebuilt with 
     private donations;

[[Page 6167]]

       Whereas in the 1980's, the San Diego Model Railroad Museum, 
     the Museum of Photographic Arts, the San Diego Automotive 
     Museum and the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center all opened 
     within Balboa Park;
       Whereas in the 1990's, the beautiful Japanese Friendship 
     Garden, the Mingei International Museum, the San Diego Art 
     Institute: Museum of the Living Artist, the WorldBeat Center, 
     and the Hall of Champions Sports Museum opened;
       Whereas Balboa Park has grown to become the one of the 
     nation's largest urban cultural parks, encompassing more than 
     1,172 acres, including 14 formal gardens, and the park is 
     home to 15 major museums, nearly 100 arts, education, 
     recreational, social and sports organizations, renowned 
     performing arts venues, as well as the world famous San Diego 
     Zoo;
       Whereas Balboa Park celebrates history, art, music, 
     science, and culture and has been a city treasure for one 
     century; and
       Whereas the 2015 centennial anniversary of the Panama-
     California Exposition and the establishment of Balboa Park is 
     an achievement of historic proportions for the City of San 
     Diego, the State of California, and the United States: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress commemorates the 100th anniversary 
     of the Panama-California Exposition and the founding of 
     Balboa Park in San Diego, California on May 9, 2015.

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