Zaragoza Birthplace and Other Historic Sites – Texas State Park 18/89
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The Deets
Technically, the Zaragoza Birthplace is part of the Goliad State Park network. However, it isn’t actually IN Goliad State Park. If you watch our vlog for Goliad State Park, we explain why we chose to split the Goliad historical sites into two ‘parks.’ Now for the details!
The Zaragoza Birthplace is in Goliad, TX, located a mile or so south of Goliad State Park. It is free to enter and sits just outside Presidio La Bahia. On the same block is a statue of Zaragoza with a few information boards. A short walk away from the presidio is a statue dedicated to the Angel of Goliad and a memorial to Fannin’s Men. Both are worth checking out. Unfortunately, La Bahia wasn’t open when we visited, although we were there during business hours. There is an admission fee. It costs $5 per adult, $4.50 per senior, $2 per child, and children 6 and under get in for free.
Along with Zaragoza’s birthplace, we also took in the El Camino Real Visitor Center and Mission Rosario. Both are free.
The History
Zaragoza Birthplace
Like many of the other historical places we visited in Goliad, this building is not original. It was recreated after locating the foundations of what was believed to be Zaragoza’s birthplace. People from the area remembered stories from their grandparents about that time. They pointed historians to the location of the foundations. The current building was completed in 1974, and it opened on 5 May 1976. That happened to be the 114th anniversary of Cinco de Mayo. Zaragoza famously defeated the French in battle on the 5th of May, and he is the reason the holiday is celebrated.
Presidio La Bahia
La Bahia, in its current location, dates back to 1747. It saw both the Battle of Goliad in 1835 and the Goliad Massacre in 1836. The presidio fell into ruin but was wonderfully restored in the 1960s. It became a National Historic Landmark in 1967.
El Camino Real Visitor Center
What is now the El Camino Real Visitor Center started as a practice run. The architects working on the mission in Goliad State Park wanted to practice a little before diving into the main project. They decided to build a house and practice all of their techniques there, that way, the men of the CCC unit assigned to Goliad would have some experience up their sleeves. It served as the construction office when Goliad State Park was being built, and the architect who designed it lived there for a while. After that, it was meant to be the keeper’s cottage for Goliad State Park. Today, it is a wonderful little museum that is absolutely worth a stop.
Mission Rosario
Mission Rosario was not part of the original plan when it came to missions in the area. Instead, it had to be built so that the two local Native American tribes could be separated. It was established in 1754, and by the early 1780s, the mission was abandoned. It fell to ruin. Only the foundation walls remain.
Our Experience
None of these locations really took our breath away. La Bahia had the potential to do so, but as stated earlier, it was closed. That was the biggest disappointment of the day. From what we could tell, they SHOULD have been open. A woman was going in and out of the building, but she never spoke to anyone or explained why the presidio was closed.
The museum at the Zaragoza Birthplace was nice, and it was completely empty while we were there. With all of the memorials and monuments in that area, at least there is a decent amount of things to see.
Mission Rosario isn’t really much to look at, especially because it’s all fenced off. You can’t get near it or even walk all the way around it. While neat to see, we were there for a whopping five minutes or so.
The Trails
There aren’t any trails at any of these locations. However, you can take a 2.5-mile trail from the Angel of Goliad statue, through Goliad State Park, and into the town of Goliad. We walked a section during our visit to Goliad State Park. It is paved and easy to walk.
Our Takeaway
If you’re not into Texas history, then you may want to pass on these locations. Our favorite location out of those we visited was the El Camino Real Visitors Center. The building is stunning, and the woman working there had so much knowledge to share. It is rarely visited and she loves when people stop in to see it.
We think Presidio La Bahia would be a really neat place to see, but perhaps call ahead of time to double-check that someone will be there.
Want to see the park in action? Check out our vlog episode for this park!
Cheers,
Lydia and Billy
