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Thank
you Madam Mayor
I'm
delighted to receive this proclamation on behalf of
The
Scottish Society of Dallas.
_______________________________________________________
There
are many connections between Texas and Scotland.
Did
you know that the state capital building in Austin was built by Scottish
stone masons? And
most
of the leaders who battled for Texas’ independence , were of Scottish ancestry,
People like Sam
Houston,
Stephen F. Austin, Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett.
Over
half of the counties in Texas, are named after Scots.
And
one of the biggest cattle ranches in Texas, covering 800,00 acres, was
The Matador, financed by
Scottish
money and run by Murdo McKenzie from Scotland who Theodore Roosevelt
called
"
the most influential.......... of American cattlemen."
And
then there's the "Big D and Wee D"
connection. Isn't there? ........ Big D, of course, is
Dallas,
Texas, and wee D is the village of Dallas which lies in the heart of Moray,
Scotland, just off
the
banks of the River Lossie. The name Dallas came from the Gaelic name, Dollas,
which means 'the
valley
of water'. Back in the 12th century, William de Ripley was given
lands on Dallas by King William
of
Lyon. And there's fairly strong evidence connecting de
Ripley with George Mifflin Dallas, who was
Vice
Pres. of the US (1845-1849)and who is credited as being the founder of
Dallas.
James Wilson & John Witherspoon, (both from Scotland) were two
of nine signers of the
Declaration
of Independence who were directly or indirectly descended from Scots
and actually, we
had
our very own declaration signed on
April
6th 1320
And
that's essentially what National Tartan Day is all about.
The
Declaration of Scottish Independence
When
I first moved to Texas, one thing that was immediately apparent to me,
was how much
Americans
value their freedom and so, I think that, especially in today's volatile
climate, the following
lines
from the Scottish declaration, will hold special significance for Americans
..
"for
so long as there shall but one hundred of us remain alive, we will never
subject ourselves
to
the dominion of the English. For it is not glory, it is not riches, neither
is it honour, but it is
Liberty
alone that we fight and contend for, which no honest man shall lose, but
with his life."
Thank
you and have a Bonnie Tartan Day
"I highly recommend ICDSoft.
They have incredible tech support.
Every question I've ever had, they've answered within minutes.
Absolutely the
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Gordon Nicol
Add
a Wee bit o' Scotland to your next event.
Born
in Edinburgh, Scotland
Scottish
Poet & Presenter
A
Rich, Romantic Scottish Accent
bringing
tears of Joy & Compassion
Gordon doesn't just
recite poetry. ( Robert Burns and his own )
He also entertains
you with the stories behind the poems.
Usually very interesting,
personal and often humorous or poignant stories.
As an MC or speaker,
he'll bring a colorful flavor to your event.
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