David (Davy) Crockett (born August 17, 1786 - died March 6, 1836) was an American frontiersman, bear hunter, sharpshooter, soldier, legislator, and folk hero. Davy was born in a cabin near Limestone, Tennessee (in eastern Tennessee) and had little formal schooling; he was the fifth of nine children born to John and Rebecca Hawkins Crockett. In 1806, when he was 20 years old, Crockett married Mary Polly Finley; they had two sons, John Wesley and William Finley. As a young man, Crockett was skilled at trapping bear and raccoon. He was later famous for wearing a coon-skin hat atop his lanky, 6-foot-tall frame.

Crockett joined the US army in 1813 and served under Andrew Jackson, fighting the Creek Indians in the southeastern US from 1813 to 1814. Andrew Jackson later became President of the USA. Crockett's wife died in 1815, and he married Elizabeth Patton, a widow who had two young children.

Colonel Crockett went on to serve in the Tennessee legislature from 1821 to 1822 and from 1823 to 1824, and represented Tennessee in the U.S. Congress from 1827 to 1831 and from 1833 to 1835. In 1834, Crockett wrote his very popular autobiography, "A Narrative of the Life of David Crockett, of the State of Tennessee."

When his political career ended in 1836 (after he lost his last election for Congress), Crockett took his family to Texas. Texas had recently declared its independence from Mexico.

The Alamo

Crockett and almost 200 other Texan volunteers (including James Bowie) died on March 6, 1836, after unsuccessfully defending the Alamo (a mission in San Antonio, Texas) for 13 days against an army of thousands of Mexican soldiers led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. The phrase, "Remember the Alamo!" soon became the battlecry that was used by Sam Houston when he defeated Gen. Santa Anna a few weeks later at San Jacinto (on April 21, 1836), winning independence for Texas. Texas then became a Republic (led by Sam Houston), and Texas became a US state on December 29, 1845.

Related Pages:

Davy Crockett Coloring/Information Printout A printout on Davy Crockett's life with a picture and a map to color.

Quiz Printout on Davy Crockett A 10 question printout on Davy Crockett's life. Or go to the answers.

Cloze Printout on Davy Crockett A fill-in-the-blanks printout on Davy Crockett's life. Or go to the answers.

The Alamo Read about the Alamo and its history. Or print a coloring page on the Alamo.

Tennessee Tennessee is a state in the eastern United States of America. Its capital is Nashville.

Texas Texas is a very large state in the south central United States of America. Its capital is Austin.

Southern States Map/Quiz Printout Go to the answers

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