Davy Crockett

Aug. 17, 1786-March 6, 1836

            A Crockett family moved to America from Ireland.  In the end, Indians massacred them but one son did survive: John Crockett.

            John and Rebecca had nine children consisting of 6 boys and 3 girls.  David Crockett was the 5Th child born.  Davy Crockett was born in a small cabin on August 17, 1786 in a wilderness of Tennessee, which was part of Virginia at that time.

 There were no schools, churches, or books in the wilderness so John moved his family a lot to find a better home.  Eventually they settled on Holston River and opened the ‘Crockett Tavern’. Davy helped out at the tavern listening to stories from passerbyers eager to see the outside world.

 At 12 years old, a Dutchman talked John into letting him use Davy for his services in helping him drive his herd over mountains to Virginia. Davy didn’t want to go but because the man paid John money, Davy had to go. Davy worked for 25 days and ended up somewhere that was 400 miles away from his house. He eventually ran away because he missed his home and family. When he got home he went to school. The fourth day at school he started getting bullied, so he beat the boy up. The next day, Davy didn’t want to get beat up by the bully and his friends so he decided to hide in the woods each school day until it was time to go home. After a few days the teacher sent a note home asking why Davy wasn’t attending school. He ran away from home when they got the letter. He knew his father would whip him with a hickory stick, as it was the usual punishment. Davy worked various jobs for 25 cents a day while he was on his own

He went home and worked faithfully for one year to help his dad pay off debts. When Davy was 16 he went to school for four days and worked two days. At school he learned how to write his name, a little math, and some reading.  He met an Irish girl and got married.  He too moved a lot but settled in Franklin County, Tennessee in 1813.

He had heard through the grapevine that the Creek Indians were on a warpath killing settlers and destroying homes in Alabama.  Davy joined a volunteer Amy under General Andrew Jackson.  Because he was the best rifleman and was familiar with woods, Jackson put him in charge of the scouting party.  The troops would have starved to death if it weren’t for Davy’s skills as a woodsman and rifleman.  He was able to find and kill wild game for food.  In April, 1814, the Creek Indians asked for peace.

When he returned home, his wife died of illness and left him with two children.  Eventually he married a widow with two children of her own.  They decided to move because the town was overcrowding.  They moved 80 miles west to Giles County, Tennessee.  Because Davy was quite popular and was well liked by the people, they made the areas magistrate.  He had no legal knowledge but his common sense worked well.  As time went on, he learned how to write better.  He was chosen a colonel in one of the states regiments.  Then he was asked to run for the legislature.  His opponent was confident that he would win because he knew of Davy’s uneducated status, but Crockett shined at his speeches with jokes and stories.  So he won.

Crockett did not like being surrounded by a lot of people so he took his family and moved way west in Tennessee on Obion River.  He built a cabin and was surrounded by a lot of wild game.  He loved being deep in the wilderness with neighbors miles away.

He was urged to run for Congress but lost because of his views regarding a tariff tax.  He lost by only 2 votes.

Crockett is well known for his hunting skills, stories and his coonskin cap.  He loved hunting bear with his hunting knife and musket named ‘Old Betsy’.  It is said that two times, he brought home a bear weighing more than 600 lbs.  In one week, he killed seventeen large bears and more than 58 in one fall through winter.  Another story says he killed 47 bears in one month for a total of 105 for the year.  One story said that a bear was running from him and dug a really deep hole to escape but Davy was right on his tail.  Bear meat was considered a delicacy and used the skins for bedding and the furs for coats.

In 1827, he was elected to Congress.  The next election, he was defeated because he was too honest as a Congressman.  But reelected in 1833 because he was able to defeat people behind President Jackson.  And this time, the honesty worked for him that’s why he was dubbed the ‘Honest Congressman’.  In 1834, he took time to write and publish an autobiography.

Davy started his famous tour of the Eastern cities on April 25, 1834.  There were lots of cheering people at each stop.  He was wined and dined.  His speeches and stories entertained many people and became very popular.

In 1833, Americans wanted to split off from Mexico and seek independence for Texas.  They captured and drove the Mexican Army with General Antonio Lopez De Santa Anna out of the state. The ‘Alamo’ is actually an old Spanish mission building built in 1744 that stands in the center of San Antonio.  Santa Anna wanted to regain control of the Alamo. Crockett volunteered with four of his Tennessee boys to fight under him William Travis and James Bowie totaling only 188 patriots and Santa Anna with 5,000 men. The fight began on February 23rd, 1836. They eventually ran out of ammunition and used caskets as clubs. The third attack from Santa Anna from all directions killed all Texans. Crockett died on March 6Th, 1836 at the young age of 49.

He was then and still is an outstanding American, statesman and folklore hero.