Tennesseans Who Died at the Alamo and the Union County Connection to the Bloody Event

According to a 1967 writing by Louise Davis of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, 32 Tennesseans died at the Alamo, which was the largest number of any state that participated in the Seige of the Alamo. The following is a list of those who sacrificed their life for the independence of Texas from Mexico:

Micajah Autry, Jackson
Joseph Bayless, Clarksville
John Blair
Samuel B. Blair
James Bowie, Elliott Springs
Robert Campbell
David Crockett, who moved from place to place–among them Greene, Lincoln, Lawrence, Franklin, Carroll, and Weakley Counties, Tennessee.
Squire Daymon
William Deardorf
Almeron Dickinson, Bolivar
John H. Dillard, Nashville
John H. Dillard, Nashville (Ms. Davis’ list contained two people by the same name)
James L. Ewing
James Girard Garrett
John M. Hayes, Nashville
Charles M. Heiskell, (At the time Beard Valley was in Knox County, but his home place became Union County in 1850.)
William Marshall
Albert Martin
William Mills
Andrew M. Nelson, Shelbyville
James Robertson
James M. Rose
Andrew H. Smith
Joshua G. Smith
A. Spain Summerlin
William E. Summers.
William Taylor
John W. Thomson
Burke Trammel
Asa Walker, Columbia
Jacob Walker, Columbia
Joseph G. Washington

Note: I’m always looking for more information; so if anyone reading this has more information on any of the people listed here, please let me know and I’ll add it.

Charles M. Heiskell, son of George and Elizabeth Frye Heiskell, lived in Beard Valley near what is now Maynardville, Tennessee. He is said to have owned one cow, which he drove to Knoxville where he sold the cow, and went to Louisiana. From there he went to Texas. It is established, apparently on sound evidence, that he was killed at The Battle of the Alamo, March 6, 1836. A great-nephew received several checks from year to year, the last one about 1914, from some person living east of San Antonio regarding a quit claim deed on land that had been owned by this Charles. The records may have been burned when the Union County Courthouse was destroyed in 1969, and I have been too busy with other projects to do further investigation. There is no tradition of Charles having descendants. Information on Charles may be found in A Critical Study of the Siege of the Alamo by Dr. Amelia M. Williams. My cousin, the late Roy Hillary Heiskell who settled in New Mexico and later Weslaco, Texas, did extensive research on Charles and most of what we have is due to his perseverance and research. For many years the plaque at the Alamo read Charles M. Haskell, but some years ago due to Roy’s research it was corrected to Heiskell. Additional evidence to substantiate that Charles M. Heiskell was killed at the Alamo is bounty records at the Texas General Land Office located by a my cousin, Roy H. Heiskell, of Weslaco, Texas. He was issued Certificates No. 341 for 640 acres of land patented Oct. 17, 1851 to his heirs--but never received and Certificate No. 883 for 1,920 acres Hamilton County, TX)--Milam Donation 727; Milam Bounty 729.)

Another part of the legend is that Charles was a friend of Sam Houston and that sparked his interest in going to help his friend in the pursuit of the independence of Texas.
Gen. Sam Houston, a former resident of Blount Co., Tennessee, went to Texas, becoming Commander in Chief of the Texan Army in the War for Texan Independence. In his Letter ("Houston Letters") of 30-Jan. 1836 to ___ White, he indicates Charles M. (Haskell) Heiskell left the Alamo with James Grant or Frank W. Johnson earlier but returned to it with Gen. Bowie.
About 100 men under Gen. Bowie and Capt. J. W. Fannin, defeated a Mexican force near "Mission Conception" on 28-Oct. 1835, after a campaign of nearly 2 months, BEJAR was surrendered to them on 11-Dec. 1835. It is presumed that during the absence of Charles from the Alamo that he was in this campaign under Gen. Bowie. David Crockett also a native of Tennessee (Greene Co.) in 1835, emigrated to Texas, becoming a General in the heroic defense of The Alamo. General William B. Travis, also was among the garrison of 178?-178? -183? who were slaughtered. Gen. James Bowie, the Commander of Charles' outfit, was ill with pneumonia in The Chapel of The Alamo at the time of the final assault and among the last to be butchered by the Mexicans. At the final assault, the five survivors subsequently bayoneted in cold blood. Three women, one a Mexican, two children and a negro servant were spared. One of the women spared was Mrs. Almeron Dickenson and the Dickenson’s child. Her husband died at the siege, but she lived to give her personal account of this history. The final assault was made March 6, 1836 by about 4,000 Mexicans, the slaughtered defenders bodies were brutally mutilated and then thrown into heaps and burned.

References:Tennesseans Who Died at the Alamo