What hard, physical evidence is there that Davy Crockett actually died at the Alamo?
Upvote:5
The most reliable record is to be gained by cross-examining all the primary sources about this event and seeing where they are in unanimous agreement. This is the case when interpreting Crockett's fate at the Alamo.
The exact details of his death seem to be in dispute in a heated argument that challenges the legitimacy of several eyewitness accounts, most infamously Pena's. It is believed by tradition (or rumor) that Crockett died fighting. This could be refuted by the sources in this paper if they all agreed on how it happened.
Michael Lind of Texas A&M University has summed up this controversy in his well-written paper, "The Death of David Crockett." I would recommend a read through it as a summary does not do justice to his deduction. To summarize, there are three main sources from the Mexican Army that conflict on how Crockett was killed (because all accounts written before the story could become romanticized agree on this point.)
One of the first reports of Crockett's death was written by a Texas four months after the Alamo fell, after the Battle of San Jacinto. I quote Lind:
The first American newspaper account identifying Crockett as one of the executed prisoners appeared in a letter of July 19, 1836, written by a Texas army officer, George M. Dolson. Dolson claimed to have served the previous day, July 18, as an interpreter between Colonel James Morgan and Santa Anna's aide, Colonel Juan Almonte, one of the Mexican officers whom Morgan held prisoner on Galveston Island after the Texans routed the Mexican army and captured Santa Anna at San Jacinto. According to Dolson, "Colonel Crockett was in the rear, had his arms folded, and appeared bold as the lion as he passed my informant [Almonte]. Santa Anna's interpreter knew Colonel Crockett, and said to my informant, 'the one behind is the famous Crockett.' When brought to the presence of Santa Anna, Castrillon said to him, 'Santa Anna, the august, I deliver up to you six brave prisoners of war.' Santa Anna replied, 'Who has given you orders to take prisoners, I do not want to see those men living—shoot them.'" While this would appear to be strong corroboration, skeptics point out that Almonte's diary, found after the Battle of San Jacinto, does not mention the alleged incident in its description of the sack of the Alamo.
Pena claims that he saw Crockett executed by Santa Anna after the fort fell. In his memoir, he also claims to have witnessed Travis' death as he looked upon the wall -- on the North side. Based on when we know the fort fell and when the prisoners were executed, Pena would have us believe that he saw Travis die and then made his way to the other side of the fort to see Crockett killed. This may have been true, but because Pena's account was compiled after the story became legendary, historians do not overlook the very real possibility that Pena bent the truth to cash in on his claim to fame.
The other accounts by Santa Anna's aide, mayor Ruiz, secretary Caro, and Santa Anna's own field report all bring conflicting details to this interpretation. Regardless of what degree of authenticity each source may have, their unanimous agreement that Crockett did indeed die defending the Alamo can lead us to safely conclude that he did not escape and roam the prairies afterwards -- regardless of how romantic that idea sounds. I would strongly encourage a full read-through of this paper for a more clear view of things.
More post
- 📝 Is There A Term For The Old Maps That Had Lines Connecting Pin-Wheels?
- 📝 Australian Head of State
- 📝 Why was the Vichy French Navy in Toulon scuttled in 1942?
- 📝 How did the king give land to new barons without taking it from the old ones?
- 📝 Who would have been worshipped as the god of engineering in Ancient Rome?
- 📝 How accurate and balanced is Paul Johnson's 'A History of the Jews'?
- 📝 Has there ever been a major migration from the New World to the Old World? If not, why?
- 📝 What is the etymology of the word "Mehrgarh", one of the earliest Neolithic site in South Asia?
- 📝 Why did Churchill become the PM of Britain during WWII instead of Lord Halifax?
- 📝 What alternative locations were considered for the United Nations?
- 📝 Was Catalonia ever a sovereign state?
- 📝 Has there been a war whose declared goal was a mere land grab without any attempts to ethically justify it?
- 📝 Did George McGovern publicly support Jimmy Carter in 1976?
- 📝 What is the earliest mention of space travel?
- 📝 What did Jacob Burckhardt intend to say by 'turn within' and 'turn without'?
- 📝 Which were the last castles to be besieged and fall in the United Kingdom?
- 📝 Why do some playing cards have only one eye?
- 📝 Why did the United States not resort to nuclear weapons in Vietnam?
- 📝 What does Carlyle mean by 'essence' in 'History is the essence of innumerable Biographies'?
- 📝 Looking for source for Jefferson Davis with Bat Wings
- 📝 What evidence is there relating to Matilda of Scotland as a wife (to Henry I) and mother (to Empress Matilda and William the Adelin)?
- 📝 When were weapons banned at the Thing assemblies in Norway?
- 📝 Which of the Nuremberg defendants spoke English, French, or Russian?
- 📝 Does Amnesty International maintain a list of prisoners of conscience?
- 📝 Did "loan sharks" arise after debtors' prison was eliminated?
- 📝 Did James Monroe and James Madison ever disagree?
- 📝 What factors contributed to the popularity of Eastern cultures in the USA in late 20th century?
- 📝 What is the Thalassic Age?
- 📝 Did the Austrians win a "great victory" at Belgrade in 1738?
- 📝 Was merchant Hugh McCulloch the first Scotsman to set foot in California?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 What hard, physical evidence is there that Davy Crockett actually died at the Alamo?
- 📝 What evidence is there that English Political divisions from the 1600s are replicated in American politics today?
- 📝 What evidence is there that Alfred paid the Danes to leave Wessex in 876?
- 📝 Is there evidence that Harald Bluetooth died from an arrow to the rear?
- 📝 What evidence is there to suggest that 'fear of the bomb' is culturally specific?
- 📝 What evidence is there that Lenin died because he was poisoned?
- 📝 What evidence is there that Bell stole the telephone design from Gray?
- 📝 Is there any evidence to support the claim that the United States was "suckered into WW1" by Zionists, made by Benjamin Freedman in his 1961 speech?
- 📝 What led some people to (correctly) believe that there was no land under the ice cap at the North Pole?
- 📝 Is there any evidence that Cleopatra and Caesarion considered fleeing to India to escape the Romans?
- 📝 What is the evidence to claim that political order in ancient Rome was sufficiently different under "kingdom", "republic" and "empire"?
- 📝 What evidence is there of the vision aids people used before the invention of eyeglasses in about 1286?
- 📝 Is there any evidence that the Catholic Church slowed innovation during the Middle Ages?
- 📝 Is there any evidence to support the claim that the US Strategic Defense Initiative played any significant role in undermining the USSR?
- 📝 What is the basis for the argument that the true believers in Juche died in the N. Korean famine?
- 📝 What historical evidence is there for the existence of Jesus Christ? What do we know about him?
- 📝 What documentary evidence is there that Roman crucifixion victims were completely nude?
- 📝 Is there convincing evidence that the language of Bulgars (proto-Bulgarians) was not Turkic, but Indo-European?
- 📝 Is there any evidence besides the scriptures that the Ark of the Covenant existed?
- 📝 Is there documentary evidence that Stalin intended/prepared to fight Germany after the Nazi-Soviet pact?
- 📝 Is there evidence that working for the Pony Express was dangerous, or not dangerous?
- 📝 What is the historical evidence behind the claim that the Soviet armies perpetrated mass rapes during their stay in Germany?
- 📝 Is there evidence that the annual pilgrimage to Mecca facilitated cultural exchanges?
- 📝 What was the South actually afraid Lincoln or Congress would do that precipitated the Civil War?
- 📝 What evidence is there of Asians and Africans in medieval Britain other than Moors in the 7th century?
- 📝 What evidence support the theory that the killing of unwanted children was practiced in ancient Athens?
- 📝 Is there evidence that scrubbing floors on one's hands and knees was a commonplace drudgery for women in the past?
- 📝 What evidence supports the claim that Shivaji's father was Muslim?
- 📝 Is there any evidence that the book of Isaiah was written before Cyrus?
- 📝 What evidence is there for the severity of Roman scourging before crucifixion?