Fannin Monument - Goliad, TX - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com

This "Marble Falls" pink granite monument is approx. 35 feet tall and rests on top of a 42x52-foot granite base. It was sculpted by Raoul Jean Jesset (a French born American sculptor who was commissioned for several other works throughout the US and France) and dedicated by the State of Texas in 1939, 3 years after that state's centennial anniversary.

It consists of two tall piers topped with a slab with relief frieze, and flanked at the bottom by two low text panels. At the top, the bas-relief depicts a partially draped male figure kneeling beside a woman who holds a five-point star atop her proper left shoulder. The base of the memorial contains grave markers, and the entire memorial is set atop a rectangular platform with steps in front. It cost $25,000 to build (in 1938/39 dollars).

The memorial monument marks the mass grave of men under the command of Colonel James W. Fannin who were massacred at this very spot by the Mexican army on March 27, 1836. A nearby Texas Historical Marker reads:

"After Battle of Coleto (Mar. 19-20) 1836, where a Texas army under Col. Fannin met defeat by Mexicans in superior numbers the Texas soldiers were held in presidio La Bahia supposedly as prisoners of war. However by order of Mexican Gen. Antonio Lopez De Santa Anna, approximately 400 of Fannin's men were marched out and massacred on Palm Sunday, Mar. 27, 1836. The wounded were shot one by one in the fort compound Col. Fannin was the last to die. Because of their profession, Drs. J. Barnard, J.E.Field and Jack Shackelford were spared, about 25 men were saved by a Mexican woman "The Angel of Goliad". Approximately 30 escaped by feigning death or swimming the San Antonio River. The Texans' corpses were stripped and partly burned, but left unburied. The atrocity three weeks after the fall of the Alamo gave Texans part of the battle cry "Remember The Alamo! Remember La Bahia"-under which decisive victory was won at San Jacinto On Apr. 21, 1836."

TITLE: Fannin Monument, (sculpture) ARTIST(S): Raoul Josset (sculptor) / Donald Nelson (architect) / Ugo Lavaggi (carver) DATE: Built in 1938 / Dedicated June 4, 1939 MEDIUM: Marble Falls pink granite (for both the sculpture and its base) CONTROL NUMBER: TX001096 Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link] PHYSICAL LOCATION: Within Goliad State Park and Historic Site On Loop 71, just 1/4 mile East of TX Hwy 183/Alt-77 Goliad, TX DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH: None noted... this monument has been studied and recorded/observed ad nauseam by many Texas history buffs.

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