Davy (or David) Crockett is referred to by many people the “King of the Wild Frontier”. He hailed from East Tennessee and had a strong reputation for enjoying hunting, fishing and storytelling. He was a colonel for the Lawrence County and the Tennessee Militia before he became a state legislator. He was also elected to the US Congress, where he was known for his strong opposition to what Andrew Jackson was working on, particularly on the Indian Removal Act.
Famed as a folk hero, frontiersman and Alamo defender, Crockett was one of the most celebrated and mythologized figures in the history of America. In fact, his exploits were glorified in a lot of books and almanacs. Here are more interesting facts about Davy Crockett.
1. He Had Extreme Experiences While Being Enlisted In The Tennessee Militia.
Crockett was born in 1786 to a pioneer family who lived on the Nolichucky River in East Tennessee, but then followed western settlement patterns, moving 3 times by the time he was 12. As a young man with a family of his own, he continued his westward movement until settling in an extreme northwest Tennessee. Following a massacre of Fort Mims occupants in southwest Alabama by Creek warriors in 1813, Crockett joined the Tennessee Militia and then participated in a massacre of Indians at Tallussahatchee, but returned home after his enlistment ended, missing the decisive Battle of Horseshoe Bend on the 27th of March 1814 when the Creeks suffered defeat. For his next enlistment, it was under Andrew Jackson at Pensacola, but he was again discharged, missing the Battle of New Orleans.
2. His Defeat In The 1834 Elections Somehow Led To His Death.
When Crockett was defeated in the 1834 elections, which was accredited to his opposing actions against, it was said to have caused him to leave Tennessee for Texas, where he participated in the 1836 Texas Revolution. He was killed at the famous Battle of the Alamo in March.
3. He Was a Natural Leader.
Crockett advanced from being a justice of the peace to 2 terms in the legislature of Tennessee, being elected to the US Congress as a Democrat in 1827 and 1829. However, he broke with Jackson over a number of issues causing him to be defeated in the 1831 elections, and returned to run again in 1835, where he suffered the same fate. Expressing his disappointment, he was quoted as saying, “You can all go to Hell and I’m going to Texas.”
4. His Stories Attracted The Attention Of Journalists And The Media.
Crockett’s lingo and tall stories about the frontier have attracted the attention of journalists and the media, which resulted to the creation of books about him being the “ring-tailed roarer” from Tennessee selling well. Starting with a pseudobiography in 1833, which was followed by Crockett’s own autobiography in 1834, an array of books and almanacs about him had appeared over the next 20 years. These publications claimed to be true stories and are narrated in frontier lingo, revealing the bigotry, cruelty and racism of the frontier. In some way, these books related the larger-than-life adventures of a frontier superman. Rediscovered by Hollywood in the 1940s and 1950s, as well as by television, to our modern era, Davy or David Crockett is seemingly assured of immortality through books and the media.
5. He Is One Of The Best Folk Heroes America Has Ever Known.
Even when he was still alive, Crockett was already a popular figure with the many stage plays that portray him. The acts that accredited him even grew to mythical proportions after his death, which led his name to become one of the best-known folk heroes of America.
6. His Attributes Had Not Earned Him a Lasting Fame, Unfortunately, In His Own Lifetime.
As history tells and as the books and almanacs portrays his character, Crockett was clearly an outstanding frontiersman, a colorful figure in the Congress and a successful Tennessee politician. However, these attributes alone would not have let him earn lasting fame. As you can see, his record in serving for the Congress was not that good, where most of the legislations he favored did not make it to pass. And even as a defender of the Alamo during the legendary battle, he was not able to attract fame more than the other fallen heroes of the event.
7. He Had a Miraculous Recovery From Malaria.
After Crockett’s first wife died in 1815, he married Elizabeth Patton. Then, he embarked on a journey with his neighbors in Alabama, during which he contracted malaria, which is a serious disease that causes fever and chills, and was left along the road to die. As miracle would have it, he recovered and managed to return to his family, much to their surprise. Remarking about his reported death, he was quoted saying, “I know’d this was a whopper of a lie, as soon as I heard it.”
8. He Was Taught To Shoot At a Very Young Age.
Crockett was already taught by his father to shoot a rifle when he was just 8 years of age. As a young boy, he eagerly go with his older brothers to hunt, but when he turned 13, his father want him to attend school. But after only 4 days of attendance, he Crockett whooped the tar out of a class bully and was afraid to go back due to revenge or punishment. This made him run away from home and spend the next 3 years wandering, but honing his skills as a woodsman while at it.
Without a doubt, David Crockett had attained fame as an outstanding frontiersman, leader of men, excellent hunter, politician with integrity and a good family man. Also, he became an epitome of the unwashed, rough and dangerous West of the Jacksonian America. The television and motion picture industry has revived him as a folk hero with an interesting life for the 20th-century audience. Now, are you inspired by the interesting facts about Davy Crockett?