Classroom Worksheet
American Hero: The Alamo, 1836
Examine the following descriptions, and identify how each author describes Crockett's death. Judge each account according to how you would place it on a spectrum of historical proof, from impossible and possible to probable and absolute certainty. Fill out the chart below.
Within weeks of the fall of the Alamo in 1836, reports of Crockett's death appeared in American newspapers. Since the 19th century, dozens of historians and authors have described how Crockett died at the Alamo. Some authors used contemporary accounts, which were previously published.
| DESCRIPTION | SPECTRUM OF PROOF |
| Leonora Bennett, Historical Sketch and Guide to the Alamo (1904) "Crockett was among the last to die. His 'Betsy' made many a Mexican rue the day he had found the army, and when there was no more time to load, he clubbed many a foes to death with his gun before he finally succumbed, his body bullet-ridden for minutes before he gave up the struggle." |
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| Karl Dennis, Glorious Defiance: Last Stands Throughout History (1990) "[A Mexican soldier] dealt him a deadly blow with his sword ...and in an instant he was pierced by no less than twenty bayonets." |
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| T.R. Fehrenbach, Lone Star: A History of Texas and Texans (1968) "Mexican accounts say, probably accurately, that a few defenders vainly attempted to surrender. These, who may have included Crockett, were shot." |
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| Jos Enrique de la Peħa, With Santa Anna in Texas (1838 trans. in 1975) "Some seven men had survived the general carnage.... Among them was...David Crockett. Santa Anna...ordered his execution...several officers...thrust themselves forward... and with swords in hand, fell upon these unfortunate defenseless men..." |
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| Robert Penn Warren, Remember the Alamo! (1958) "[Crockett] seized his rifle in his left hand and leaped to the middle of the room for space to swing it. But he was now open for a Mexican volley, and fell." |