In Sleuthing the Alamo, historian James E. Crisp draws back the curtain on years of mythmaking to reveal some surprising truths about the Texas Revolution--truths that are often obscured by both racism and political correctness. This engaging first-person account of historical detective work illuminates the methods of the serious historian who searches for the more complex truths behind the glorious myths.
Beginning with a personal prologue recalling both the pride and the prejudices that he encountered in the Texas of his youth, Crisp illustrates how he discovered documents...

Just over thirty years ago, Dan Kilgore ignited a controversy with his presidential address to the Texas State Historical Association and its subsequent publication in book form, "How Did Davy Die?". After the 1975 release of the first-ever English translation of eyewitness accounts by Mexican army officer Jose Enrique de la Pena. Kilgore had the audacity to state publicly that historical sources suggested Davy Crockett did not die on the ramparts of the Alamo, swinging the shattered remains of his rifle 'Old Betsy'. Rather, Kilgore asserted, Mexican forces took Crockett captive and then...