I.

Introduction

Davy Crockett (1786-1836), American frontier hero and political leader whose death at The Alamo made him a national hero. Crockett was an expert scout, a crack rifleman, and a noted hunter. By his own account he killed 105 bears in about nine months. He was good-natured and always willing to joke about himself, even about his worst misfortunes, and he became known as a witty narrator of tall tales.

David Crockett was born in Greene County, Tennessee, on August 17, 1786. He spent much of his youth as a backwoods hunter, and his character was formed by the pioneer hardships on the Tennessee frontier. He was a cattle driver at the age of 12, a wagon driver at 14, and at 16 he went to work for men to whom his father owed $76. After paying off his father’s debt, he continued his employment to gain six months of schooling. Crockett later boasted about his lack of education and said he considered proper spelling “contrary to nature.”