GOLIAD, TEXAS. Goliad, the county seat of Goliad County, originated as one of the oldest Spanish colonial municipalities in the state. The town is on the Southern Pacific Railroad, the San Antonio River, U.S. highways 59 and 183, and State Highway 239. It was established in October 1749, when colonizer José de Escandón recommended moving Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo de Zúñiga Mission and its royal protector, Nuestra Señora de Loreto de La Bahía del Espíritu Santo Presidio (Presidio La Bahía), from the Guadalupe River to a site named Santa Dorotea, on the San Antonio River. A new presidio, La Bahía, was built on a hill near the river, where sand, limestone, and timber were abundant. Around the presidio walls grew the settlement of La Bahía, and on the opposite bank stood Mission Espíritu Santo.