Goliad, Texas | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Historic district of downtown Goliad, Texas | |
| Motto: "Birthplace of Texas Ranching"[1] | |
 Location of Goliad, Texas | |
| Coordinates:28°40′N97°24′W / 28.667°N 97.400°W /28.667; -97.400 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Goliad |
| Area | |
• Total | 1.57 sq mi (4.07 km2) |
| • Land | 1.56 sq mi (4.05 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0039 sq mi (0.01 km2) |
| Elevation | 160 ft (50 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 1,620 |
| • Density | 1,040/sq mi (400/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code | 77963 |
| Area code | 361 |
| FIPS code | 48-30080[3] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1358133[4] |
| Website | www |
Goliad (/ˈɡoʊliæd/GOH-lee-ad) is a city and thecounty seat ofGoliad County, Texas, United States. It is known for the 1836Goliad massacre during theTexas Revolution. It had a population of 1,620 at the2020 census.[5][6] It is part of theVictoria, Texas,metropolitan statistical area.
In 1747, the Spanish government sentJosé de Escandón to inspect the northern frontier of its North American colonies, includingSpanish Texas. In his final report, Escandón recommended thePresidio La Bahía be moved from itsGuadalupe River location to the banks of the San Antonio River, so it could better assist settlements along theRio Grande.[7] Both thepresidio and the mission that it protected,Mission Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo de Zúñiga, moved to their new location sometime around October 1749. Escandón proposed that 25 families fromNew Spain be relocated near thepresidio to form a civilian settlement, but he could not find enough willing settlers.[8]
With the conclusion of theSeven Years' War in 1763, France cededLouisiana and its Texas claims to Spain.[9] With France no longer a threat to the crown's North American interests, the Spanish monarchy commissioned the Marquis de Rubi to inspect all of thepresidios on the northern frontier of New Spain and make recommendations for the future.[10] Rubi recommended that severalpresidios be closed and that La Bahia be kept and rebuilt in stone. La Bahia was soon "the only Spanish fortress for the entireGulf Coast from the mouth of the Rio Grande to theMississippi River".[11] Thepresidio was at the crossroads of several major trade and military routes. It quickly became one of Texas's three most important areas, along withBéxar andNacogdoches.[11] A civil settlement, then known asLa Bahia, soon developed near the presidio. By 1804, the settlement had one of only two schools in Texas.[12]
In early August 1812 during theMexican War of Independence, Mexican revolutionaryBernardo Gutiérrez de Lara and his recruits, called theRepublican Army of the North, invaded Texas.[13] In November, the invaders captured Presidio La Bahia.[14]Texas GovernorManuel María de Salcedo laid siege to the fort for the next four months.[15] Unable to win a decisive victory, Salcedo lifted the siege on February 19, 1813, and turned toward San Antonio de Bexar.[16] The rebels controlled thepresidio until July or August 1813, whenJosé Joaquín de Arredondo led royalist troops in retaking all of Texas.[17] Henry Perry, a member of the Republican Army of the North, led forces back to Texas in 1817 and attempted to recapture La Bahia. The Spanish reinforced thepresidio with soldiers from San Antonio, and defeated Perry's forces on June 18 near Coleto Creek.[17]
The area was invaded again in 1821. The United States and Spain had signed theAdams–Onís Treaty in 1819, which ceded all US territorial claims on the Texas area to Spain. On October 4, theLong Expedition (with 52 members) captured La Bahia. Four days later, Colonel Ignacio Pérez arrived with troops from Bexar, andLong surrendered.[18] By the end of 1821, Mexico had achieved its independence from Spain, and Texas became part of the newly created country.[19]
In 1829, the name of theMexican Texas village of La Bahía was changed to "Goliad", believed to be ananagram ofHidalgo (omitting the silent initial "H"), in honor of the patriot priestMiguel Hidalgo, the father of theMexican War of Independence.[20]
On October 9, 1835, in the early days of theTexas Revolution, a group of Anglo-American immigrants attacked thepresidio in theBattle of Goliad. The Mexican garrison quickly surrendered, leaving the Anglo-Americans in control of the fort. The firstdeclaration of independence of theRepublic of Texas was signed here on December 20, 1835, and immediately thereafter,Nicholas Fagan raised the "Bloody Arm Flag" also known as the "First Flag of Texas Independence" over Presidio La Bahia. Anglo-Americans held the area until March 1836, when their garrison underColonelJames Fannin was defeated at the nearbyBattle of Coleto.Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, then president of Mexico, ordered that all survivors were to be executed. OnPalm Sunday, March 27, 1836, in what was later called theGoliad Massacre, 303 were marched out of the fort to be executed, and 39 were executed inside thepresidio(20 prisoners were spared because they were either physicians or medical attendants); 342 men were killed and 28 escaped.[21]
Famous Mexican GeneralIgnacio Zaragoza was born in Goliad in 1829. He commanded the forces resisting theFrench Army in theBattle of Puebla, now celebrated asCinco de Mayo on May 5, 1862.[22]
Texas gunfighterKing Fisher lived for a time in Goliad before moving toEagle Pass inMaverick County, Texas.
The 1902 Goliad tornado devastated the town, killing 114 people, including Sheriff Robert Shaw, and injuring at least 225. It is tied for the deadliest tornado in Texas history, and remains among the deadliest in the United States.[23] Dr. Louis Warren Chilton, a young doctor whose wife was injured and whose daughter was lifted in the tornado funnel but survived, set up a temporary hospital and morgue in the courthouse. TheDr. L.W. and Martha E.S. Chilton House was built starting in June and included an underground shelter.[24]
Goliad is located near the center of Goliad County at28°40′N97°24′W / 28.667°N 97.400°W /28.667; -97.400 (28.669, –97.392).[25]U.S. Route 59 passes through the center of town as Pearl Street, leading northeast 26 miles (42 km) toVictoria and southwest 29 miles (47 km) toBeeville.U.S. Route 183 (Jefferson Street) crosses US 59 northeast of the original center of town; US 183 leads north 31 miles (50 km) toCuero and south 26 miles (42 km) toRefugio. Goliad is 91 miles (146 km) southeast ofSan Antonio and 68 miles (109 km) north ofCorpus Christi.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2), of which 0.004 sq mi (0.01 km2), or 0.28%, is covered by water.[26] TheSan Antonio River flows from west to east along the southern border of the city; it is a tributary of theGuadalupe River, joining it just before their mouth atSan Antonio Bay.
| Climate data for Goliad, Texas (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1937–2014) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 90 (32) | 97 (36) | 99 (37) | 105 (41) | 102 (39) | 112 (44) | 112 (44) | 112 (44) | 111 (44) | 102 (39) | 96 (36) | 89 (32) | 112 (44) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 65.6 (18.7) | 69.6 (20.9) | 75.1 (23.9) | 81.1 (27.3) | 86.8 (30.4) | 91.6 (33.1) | 94.7 (34.8) | 96.1 (35.6) | 90.9 (32.7) | 84.3 (29.1) | 74.7 (23.7) | 67.5 (19.7) | 81.5 (27.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 54.4 (12.4) | 58.3 (14.6) | 64.3 (17.9) | 70.7 (21.5) | 77.1 (25.1) | 82.0 (27.8) | 84.3 (29.1) | 85.0 (29.4) | 80.5 (26.9) | 72.6 (22.6) | 63.2 (17.3) | 56.1 (13.4) | 70.7 (21.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 43.3 (6.3) | 47.0 (8.3) | 53.4 (11.9) | 60.4 (15.8) | 67.4 (19.7) | 72.5 (22.5) | 73.8 (23.2) | 73.8 (23.2) | 70.1 (21.2) | 60.9 (16.1) | 51.8 (11.0) | 44.7 (7.1) | 59.9 (15.5) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 7 (−14) | 13 (−11) | 20 (−7) | 32 (0) | 42 (6) | 55 (13) | 61 (16) | 61 (16) | 44 (7) | 23 (−5) | 20 (−7) | 8 (−13) | 7 (−14) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 2.71 (69) | 1.73 (44) | 2.74 (70) | 2.67 (68) | 4.54 (115) | 3.90 (99) | 2.95 (75) | 3.41 (87) | 4.69 (119) | 3.41 (87) | 2.33 (59) | 2.13 (54) | 37.21 (945) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 7.1 | 6.9 | 6.1 | 5.0 | 5.3 | 7.0 | 6.4 | 5.9 | 8.0 | 6.5 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 76.6 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Source:NOAA[27][28] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 885 | — | |
| 1930 | 1,424 | — | |
| 1940 | 1,446 | 1.5% | |
| 1950 | 1,584 | 9.5% | |
| 1960 | 1,782 | 12.5% | |
| 1970 | 1,709 | −4.1% | |
| 1980 | 1,990 | 16.4% | |
| 1990 | 1,946 | −2.2% | |
| 2000 | 1,975 | 1.5% | |
| 2010 | 1,908 | −3.4% | |
| 2020 | 1,604 | −15.9% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[29] | |||
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 649 | 40.06% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 89 | 5.49% |
| Native American orAlaska Native (NH) | 5 | 0.31% |
| Asian (NH) | 6 | 0.37% |
| Some other race (NH) | 2 | 0.12% |
| Multiracial (NH) | 41 | 2.53% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 828 | 51.11% |
| Total | 1,620 |
As of the2020 United States census, 1,620 people, 713 households, and 420 families resided in the city.
As of the 2000census,[3] 1,975 people, 749 households, and 518 families resided in the city. The population density was 1,294.3 inhabitants per square mile (499.7/km2). The 877 housing units had an average density of 574.7/sq mi (221.9/km2). Theracial makeup of the city was 75.44% White, 6.08% African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.61% Asian, 14.99% from other races, and 2.53% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 49.72% of the population.
Of the 749 households, 33.9% had children under 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were not families. About 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.8% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the city, the age distribution was 26.3% under 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 84.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,200, and for a family was $33,438. Males had a median income of $28,889 versus $20,167 for females. Theper capita income for the city was $13,997. About 19.7% of families and 23.1% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 31.5% of those under 18 and 17.6% of those 65 or over.
TheGoliad Independent School District[1] serves Goliad.
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The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to theKöppen climate classification, Goliad has ahumid subtropical climate,Cfa on climate maps.[33]
Municipalities and communities ofGoliad County, Texas,United States | ||
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| Unincorporated communities | ||
| International | |
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