General Ignacio Zaragoza was born in Goliad on March 24, 1829. He is best known for leading six hundred Mexican forces to repel six thousand five hundred French troops at Puebla on May 5, 1862, halting a French advance into Mexico and giving lasting meaning to Cinco de Mayo. In Goliad, his birthplace reflects the region’s ties to Mexico and his importance in Mexican and borderlands history. The memorial site began in 1961, when Goliad County donated land for a monument. His birth home was reconstructed on its original foundation, opened to the public on May 5, 1976, and the grounds later received a bronze statue donated by the people of Puebla.