Goliad History Lesson

Sunday, March 24, 2024

Hi Blog!

On our way to Mathis, Texas in the RV, we drove through Goliad, Texas. We learned there were a number of historic sites in Goliad and decided to make a day trip back to explore some Texas history.

Goliad is the third oldest town in Texas and is the county seat of Goliad County, one of the original counties of Texas. The modern town of Goliad began in 1749 when the Spanish moved the Mission Espiritu Santo de Zuniga and the Presidio La Bahia here from the Guadalupe River.

We started our history tour at the El Camino Real de los Tejas Visitor Center. The El Camino Real was a thoroughfare in the 18th century Spanish colonial era in Spanish Texas and was instrumental in the development and history of Texas. The trail has been mapped from Louisiana through Texas to Mexico with part of the trail crossing through Goliad County. 

The Visitor Center is located in a reconstruction of the Custodian's Cottage for the Mission Espiritu Santo de Zuniga.

The Civilian Conservation Corps was assigned to Goliad, Texas from 1935 to 1941 to work on a project known as Goliad State Park. The CCC built a custodian’s complex for the park between 1936 and 1937.  The CCC built most everything in the house by hand as the house was an experimental studio, testing the methods they would use to reconstruct Mission Espíritu Santo in the park. The tile was fired in a kiln on site in the park. Hinges on the doors were made in the metal shop at the CCC camp. There are 8 different doors in the cottage so the CCC craftsman could practice the various styles used by the Spanish.

In addition to the hand made furniture and built-in bookcases, the CCC used logs to create an offset staircase leading to the second floor. The design is a great way to save space in a small house.

After the Visitor Center, we made our way over to Goliad State Park. This Texas state park was established to preserve the Spanish mission and commemorate historic events in Texas history. The Spanish established the mission at this site in 1749. The Franciscan priests closed the mission in 1830. The Civilian Conservation Corps reconstructed the mission during the 1930s so that it would appear as it did in 1783. The site became a state park in 1949. 

The reconstruction of the mission was done on the actual footprints of the mission buildings. The project included the Church, Granary, Cloister, and Workshop. New construction included a store, museum, furniture and decorative metalwork, the park roads, campgrounds and picnic areas.

The granary building was filled with lots of period artifacts. Supervised by Franciscan priests, the women spun wool for clothing, made clay pots used for storage and cooking, harvested grain, fruit, and vegetables, and ground corn into meal. The men worked with cattle, farmed, and assisted with the construction of the mission and presidio. These people became adept horse riders and ranchers. Over time the mission became one of the first large cattle ranches in the region. 

Inside the museum, we explored the history of the area. The native people living and working at the mission were from many groups, including the Aranama, Piguique, Manos de Perro, Tamique, Tawakoni, and Tonkawa. They chose to try life at the mission because the mission and presidio provided protection from raids. During the American Revolution, mission vaqueros herded thousands of heads of cattle to Louisiana in support of the American struggle for independence.

 

Spanish soldiers from nearby Presidio La Bahia were assigned to protect the Mission.  Some may still linger on the premises:

The mission remained in service until Mexican Independence in 1821. However, two Franciscans refused to leave and remained as parish priests. By the 1830s most of the Christianized Indians had left and the mission was facing opposition from raiding Apache and Comanche. These conditions coupled with a lack of money and political turmoil in Texas forced the mission to close in 1830.

After the mission was abandoned, stone from the site was used in new construction projects. This section of wall was the only one left standing when the CCC began their work.

After visiting the museum, we walked the walled in grounds of the mission. The fields were full of wildflowers. An old sun dial sits in one of the gardens.

By the time we finished our walk, it was getting close to lunchtime, so we asked a Park Ranger for a recommendation for lunch. On the way to La Bahia Restaurant, we passed the Presidio La Bahia State Historic Site. We learned that the Presidio is owned and operated by the Catholic Diocese of Victoria.

The Presidio La Bahía was designated a National Historic Landmark and is considered the world's finest example of a Spanish frontier fort. This fort was the most fought-over fort in Texas history, participating in six National Revolutions/Wars for independence. Spanish, Mexican and Texas soldiers all garrisoned in its fortified walls. 

Presidio La Bahía was a fort, not a mission. The chapel was erected in the quadrangle for the sole use of the soldiers and Spanish settlers living in the town of La Bahía surrounding the fort. The name given the chapel was "Our Lady of Loreto," and is the oldest building in the compound in continuous use since the 1700s.

The chapel is one of the oldest churches in America, and one of the only buildings in existence that has its original "groin vaulted ceiling" in place. The striking fresco behind the altar was done in 1946 by the "Michelangelo of South Texas," renowned Corpus Christi artist Antonio Garcia.

During our visit, we learned more about the Texas Revolution and the Goliad Massacre. On March 27, 1836, following the Battle of Refugio and the Battle of Coleto, approximately 445 prisoners of war from the Army of the Republic of Texas were executed by the Mexican Army in the town of Goliad. The men surrendered under the belief they would be set free within a few weeks; however, this was not to be. Despite appeals for clemency, the massacre was carried out by Lt. Colonel José Nicolás de la Portilla, under orders from General and President of Mexico, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. The massacre happened just a few weeks after the Battle of the Alamo. Each year, re-enactors gather at the fort to remember. We arrived just after the final memorial concluded this year's re-enactment. There were still a few camps out on the parade grounds.

After our visit to the Presidio, we took a stroll through Goliad State Park along the banks of the San Antonio River. There are five major 18th-century Spanish missions built along the historical course of the river near the town of San Antonio. The most famous mission is San Antonio de Valero, better known as the Álamo. The Presidio La Bahía and its mission, Mission Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo de Zúñiga in Goliad are located along the southern portion of the river.

On the way back to camp, we decided to visit historic downtown Goliad. In the good old days, Goliad was known for the Goliad Stampede that included local cowboys and cowgirls pushing longhorn cattle through the Goliad square. It was discontinued after the Bicentennial in 1976 when 116 longhorns were spooked during the cattle drive and began to scatter into the crowd of onlookers and vehicles. This tradition is still talked about in the community, and they hope to carry the memory on with a Goliad Stampede Greenspace installation. This new public space will feature colorful plants, custom painted life size cattle and will be the grand entrance to the marketplace when vendors set up for Monthly Market Days. 

 

How Now. Colorful Cows!

The Courthouse Square is a quintessential south Texas small town square with stunning live oak trees and many architect designed buildings from local Goliad brick and salvaged stone from the Mission site. The Square was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 and Goliad was named a Texas Main Street City in 1984. 

The Goliad County courthouse dominates the town square. A major hurricane had removed the central tower, but a major restoration was completed in 2003. The reconstruction and installation of the central tower, made hurricane-resistant, returned the courthouse to its original height.

More rain is expected, so it may be a day or two before we having anything further to blog about. 

 

In the meantime, stay thirsty my friends.