On to the Alamo: Colonel Crockett's Exploits and Adventures in Texas (Penguin Classics)

"Davy" Crockett's backwoods dress, slangy language, and sharp sense of humor made him a popular Washington figure and an American icon - his death in the battle of the Alamo in 1836 made him a legend. First published in the year of Crockett's death and falsely credited to his authorship, Colonel Crockett's Exploits and Adventures in Texas presents the battle of the Alamo as a heroic effort to halt the ruthless Mexican leader Santa Anna's "invasion" of Texas.Glorifying the vastly outnumbered defenders who refused to surrender, taking many Mexican soldiers down with them before they were finally killed, Richard Penn Smith's "eye-witness" narrative was a huge success in its day. Accepted as fact for nearly a century, Smith's fictitious account of the famous battle created a myth that became a cornerstone of Texan identity and American popular culture. David “Davy” Crockett (1786—1836) was born in Tennessee, fought alongside Andrew Jackson in the War of 1812, and later served three terms in the House of Representatives before heading to Texas, where he died defending the Alamo. Col. Crockett's Exploits and Adventures in Texas , first published after Crockett's death and disingenuously attributed to him, was written by Richard Penn Smith as a narrative that promoted a sanitized account of the Alamo as a heroic effort by Americans to stem the Mexican “invasion” of Texas. The story, which was a huge success in its day, created a myth of the battle that pervaded the collective American memory for more than 150 years and reinforced the image of Davy Crockett as the “King of the Frontier.” Richard Penn Smith ; Edited With An Introduction And Notes By John Seelye. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [131]-149).