Happy birthday to Colonel David Crockett!

Born on August 17, 1786 in Greene County, Tennessee, Crockett was a larger-than-life figure who spent his life moving steadily westward. In 1816, he explored a section of frontier that had recently been purchased by the Federal government from the Chickasaw nation. As he told it in his autobiography:

“I went on to a place called Shoal Creek…and here again I got sick. I took the ague and fever, which I supposed was brought on me by camping out. I remained here for some time, as I was unable to go farther; and in that time, I became so well pleased with the country about there, that I resolved to settle in it.”

The country which so well pleased Crockett would become Lawrence County in less than a year. And even he probably could not have predicted at that time what a turn his life would take in Lawrence County.

Crockett, who could barely read and write when he settled near Shoal Creek, was elected as a magistrate in Lawrence County. Over the next four years, he was elected colonel of the county’s militia company, one of the first commissioners of the city of Lawrenceburg, and state representative.

In his own words, shortly after his arrival in Lawrence County, Crockett “began to take a rise.”

Crockett also borrowed a large sum of money to build a gristmill, powder mill, and distillery in Lawrence County, at Crockett Falls in modern David Crockett State Park. Unfortunately for Crockett, his industrial operations–and his aspirations to financial stability–were short-lived. A flood of Shoal Creek destroyed Crockett’s mill and distillery in 1821. The disaster precipitated his move from Lawrence County to West Tennessee.

In West Tennessee, Crockett’s meteoric rise continued as he was elected to two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. When the voters denied him a third term, he went to Texas to try to start over. Just a few months later, he met his end at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas while fighting for Texas independence.

Crockett’s legacy is everywhere in Lawrence County. As Lawrence County’s most legendary resident, his name can be found on street signs, theater marquees, statues, parks, schools, and museums.

Happy birthday, Davy!