James A. Leach: “Mr. Speaker, at a time when we as a country are galvanized by a singular international event, it is important to deal…”

“Mr. Speaker, at a time when we as a country are galvanized by a singular international event, it is important to deal with normalcy. It is particularly uplifting to discuss history. The resolution before us speaks to an event a century and a half ago, the Grand Excursion of 1854, which symbolizes the energy of the railroads from the east meeting and crossing our country's greatest river at what we now call the Quad Cities. The excursion party of 1854 traveled from Chicago, the home of the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), to Rock Island by train, proceeding then by boat from the Quad Cities to the present day Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. Among the 1,200 participants in the initial excursion was our 13th President, Millard Fillmore. In the first year after the trip, steamboat traffic from St. Paul doubled and 30,000 new immigrants traveled the Mississippi River. The power of the river as a force for commerce, along with its magic and beauty, drew increasingly greater numbers of people as the years continued.”