OUT AND ABOUT IN BAY CITY, TEXAS

Tuesday, October 29 – Today, we decided to do a walk about of the downtown area of Bay City, Texas.

Bay City, the county seat of Matagorda County, was established in 1894. In August 1894, before a single building had been erected, the first issue of the Bay City Breeze was published. It promoted the new community. Distributed countywide, the newspaper, coupled with the promoters' promise to build a new courthouse if the county government were moved, succeeded in convincing county residents to support the new town. On September 18, 1894, Matagorda County voters elected to make Bay City the new county seat. We think that was a pretty fast turn around.

Bay City is a very typical Texas "old" town. The town is in a square with the courthouse in the middle. The new courthouse was built in  1965.  This is one of the few small Texas towns we've visited that did not have a beautifully remodeled older courthouse.

The population as of 2012 is 17,476. For a town this size, we didn't see too many out on a Tuesday.

Homestead built in 1906 for Matagorda Pharmacy. Still the pharmacy today.

The site of the original post office built in 1918 now serves at the Matagorda County Museum. The Museum was closed on Tuesday…darn the bad luck.

The downtown area has some really nice sidewalk areas.

After taking a leisurely walk around town, we visited the South Side Historic District. It is a National Registry Neighborhood.

Boney House, 1910, named after the mayor of Bay City from 1905-1906

Hawkins-Furse House, 1914

Kilbride-Barkley House, 1910, prominent ranchers and civic leaders.

Ditch-Miller House, 1908.

There are many many more beautiful homes on this driving tour. These homes are so different, we were amazed that they were all built around the same time.

Bay City is an nice town, but too far from Houston to meet our needs.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

 

 

LANDED SHORT OF HOUSTON

Monday, October 28 – We are still heading toward Houston. Our normal campsite, the Houston Elks, is packed. It looks like we may not be able to get into their campground until December…if then! So we decided to make a stop in Bay City, Texas.

We are staying at a relatively new campground, 60 North RV Park. It gets its name from the location....Texas Route 60. It is a Passport America park offering 50% off for the first two nights. It has very nice and long concrete pads with plenty of room for your RV and vehicle. There is a nice grass berm between each site. All the sites are 50 amp electric full-hookups with water and sewer. The managers and office workers are very nice. We are parked on site P-28.

Looking right.

Looking left.

We are about 1.5 hours from Houston. We actually drove up to Houston this afternoon to look at some alternative campgrounds. Unfortunately, we didn't find anything in our price range. Looks like we'll have to move further out to the surrounding area to find a place this time. Dang!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

WRAPPING IT UP IN GOLIAD, TX

Sunday, October 27 – The River Hiking trail in Goliad State Park was on today's agenda. It follows the San Antonio River along the outer edge of the park. It covers about 3 miles in mostly wooded areas.

Along the walk we came across a huge area of not three- but FOUR-leaf clover. We have never seen so many in one spot. This must be our lucky day

It is such a peaceful hike. Even though the tail runs along the San Antonio River, we didn't see the River all that much.

We didn't see much wildlife either except HUGE grasshoppers....things are definitely bigger in Texas!

There were also numerous turkey vultures soaring in the sky and roosting in the trees. I think they knew we didn't take any water on our hike..... :-)

There is another trail called the Angel of Goliad trail. It is a 2.5 mile hike. In one direction it took us to the Angel of Goliad Statue and in the other direction to downtown Goliad.

Historical accounts refer to the "Angel of Goliad" as a lady of Mexican birth named Francisca Alavéz . She is often referred to as the wife of Captain Telesforo Alavéz who was commander of Mexican Centralista forces. On March 20, Major William P. Miller and his 75 men were captured and moved to Presidio La Bahia. The prisoners were bond so tightly it cut off circulation. They were deprived of food and water. The "Angel of Goliad" helped save the lives of many of these men. Several of the men that survived recalled that she pleaded for their lives, helped sneak out some troops at night and hid some of the men. She also tended to wounds and sending messages and provisions to those still imprisoned.

Landing Gear Problem:  Paul has noticed the last two times we setup that the 5^th wheel would not level correctly. Upon inspection, he determined the landing gear were not deploying at the same rate. One was going down twice as fast as the other. Time for closer inspection.

Oh no....now the slower jack would not store! Paul hooked-up the truck and with the help of a friendly neighbor, began chopping out the wooden block he placed under the jack when setting up. It wasn't easy, but they finally removed the block and the jack was free.

Paul dismantled the jack and was able to get it working again, but it was still deploying slower than its partner. At least it stores and we can use it enough until we can find a place to get it repaired. Anyone ever have a similar problem and know the cause?

Many of the blogs we read are containing gorgeous photos of the fall colors. In case anyone out there would like to see the fall colors in this area of Texas, here is a photo for you…..not so gorgeous.

We really enjoyed our three days in Goliad. If you are traveling in this area, be sure to stop and enjoy this historic town.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day.

GOLIAD WAR HEROES

Friday, October 25 – Goliad, Texas, is the birthplace of the famous Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza, commander against the French Army in the battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. French forces attacked Puebla in a battle that lasted the entire day of May 5, 1862, the now-famed Cinco de Mayo. Zaragoza's well-armed, well-trained men forced the withdrawal of the French troops from Puebla to Orizaba.

 

Zaragoza's birthplace

Zaragoza became one of the great national heroes of Mexico. Songs have been written in his honor, and schools, plazas, and streets have been named either Zaragoza or Cinco de Mayo.

Unique fact about Zaragoza…On January 21, 1857, while on an important army assignment in San Luis Potosí, Zaragoza was unable to attend his own marriage to Rafaela Padilla in Monterey, so his brother, Miguel, served as his proxy.

A short walk from the Zaragoza Memorial took us to another historical site, the Fannin's Memorial. After “Remember the Alamo,” the Texas Revolution’s most potent battle cry was “Remember Goliad.” The darkest day in Texas history, The Goliad Massacre, took place on Palm Sunday, March 27, 1836, when Col. James Fannin and 341 men under his command were executed a week after their capture. Some were killed along roads near Goliad’s historic Presidio La Bahía. Others, including Fannin, were executed inside the fort, which had been constructed in 1749 to protect the nearby Mission Espíritu Santo. Fannin and his troops are buried beneath the Fannin Memorial Monument, located next to the fort. There was twice the loss of life at Goliad as there was at the Battle of the Alamo.

While visiting these two historic sites, Paul attracted a new little friend. This little guy followed us everywhere. Paul tried to explain to him that we had nothing to share.

Another interesting tidbit for football fans:  We also learned that Goliad is the home of former Houston Oiler Coach Bum Phillips who recently passed away. He has a large ranch just outside town.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

GOLIAD, TEXAS….PRESIDIO LA BAHIA

Saturday, October 26 - Presidio La Bahia, The Fort on the Bay, a National Historic Landmark, is considered the world's finest example of a Spanish frontier fort. This is the most fought over fort in Texas history. This fort was at the center of every attempt to forcibly change the governmental order of Texas.

The history of Presidio La Bahia and Goliad can be traced through the flags of the various nations that have controlled this region of South Texas. Click on the photo to enlarge it and read about all the different nations.

The first Declaration of Texas Independence was formally declared at the Presidio on December 20, 1835. The first Texas flag flew here, and it was the location of the darkest day in Texas history, the Goliad Massacre.

There was a list of all those slain at the Goliad Massacre, and it appears that we both have relatives that died for Texas  (Paul's last name is Weaver and Marsha's maiden name is Wadsworth.)

Barracks

Our Lady of Loreto Chapel was erected in the quadrangle of the Presidio for the sole use of the soldiers and Spanish settlers. It is the oldest building in the compound, in continuous use since the 1700's.  As a matter of fact, as we we leaving people were arriving for a wedding.

One of the oldest churches in America, it also is one of the only buildings in existence that has its original “groin vaulted ceilings” in place. This centuries-old chapel was where Fannin's men were held during their captivity before being massacred. It was also here that the First Declaration of Texas Independence was signed.

There is so much history in this area. We will tell you more in our next post.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

HEADIN' BACK TO HOUSTON

Friday, October 25 – .We pulled out of Leisure Valley Ranch this morning heading North. We are on our way to Houston to sit for awhile. We'll be there through the Christmas Holidays.

We stopped about half way to Houston in Goliad, TX. An historic town filled with many Texas sites that we will be visiting and reporting on in future posts.

We are staying at Goliad State Park.

The park is located within three ecological zones and located on the San Antonio River. It serves as the hub for visiting the Mission, Espiritu Santo (located in the park), the Presidio La Bahia, the Ignacio Zaragoza Birthplace, Fannin Battleground, the Goliad Historic District and Mission Rosario.

We are in site #26, a water and electric site. Each site on the outside of our loop has a covered picnic table, fire ring and grill. It is pretty much a large gravel parking lot with sites around the outer perimeter and another group of sites in the very center. It's pretty quiet with only a half dozen campers in our area. The cost is $20 per night but unfortunately, we have to also pay admission to the park for each day. That's crazy, in our opinion. Paul has a Texas Senior Pass providing half price on admission, but Marsha has to pay the full $3 admission per day. Maybe we should hide her in the trunk and sneak her in.....LOL.

Please notice the big, empty field next to our site.

There is another camping area in the park with pull-through sites. Those sites are $25 per night.

We were joined after dark by about 30 scouts camping in the area next to us. There goes our solitude. No problems....they were well behaved and even quieted down by bed-time.

We have company….9 tents.

The park has camping, picnicking, historic sights, swimming, canoeing, fishing, hiking trails and a park store. There is also a walking/biking paved trail into the nearby town of Goliad.

After getting set up, we drove into historic Goliad to see the town and stop at the Chamber of Commerce/Visitor's Center. Goliad is a phonetic anagram of Hidalgo, the priest who became a hero during the Mexican Revolution. (The "H" is not pronounced in Spanish.) Goliad is one of the oldest municipalities in Texas.

Historic Goliad is made up of the Court House surrounded by a block of historic buildings. An excellent walking tour is available describing many of the historic buildings.

The yellow building below is the Von Dohen Building built in 1896. It housed and continues to house the Goliad Pharmacy.

You can't have a historic town in Texas without a “hanging tree.” Located on the North lawn of the courthouse, the tree was often used in the “good ole' days” of Texas to enforce law and order in a pretty wild area.

Why is Goliad called the "Birthplace of Texas Ranching?" The first great cattle ranch in Texas is said to have its beginnings at Mission Espiritu Santo which is located in Goliad State Park.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day.