Micajah Autry Died Defending the Alamo
One of Autry’s letters now on display at the Alamo. Image courtesy of Sampson County
On March 6, 1836, North Carolina native Micajah Autry died defending the Alamo. Autry was born in Sampson County around 1794 and grew up in Cumberland County.
In 1823 Autry moved to Tennessee, where he practiced law and tried his hand as a merchant. In Jackson, Tennessee, he met David Crockett, who some believe influenced Autry’s decision to investigate the Texas frontier. Autry set out for Texas with a companion in late 1835 and sent a series of remarkably descriptive letters home to his wife. Those letters survived and one is on display at the Alamo to this day. In that letter he states, “I go the whole Hog in the cause of Texas. I expect to help them gain their independence and also to form their government, for it is worth risking many lives for.” A postscript to the letter reads, “Col. Crockett has joined our company.”
In Texas Autry and Crockett enlisted in the Volunteer Auxiliary Corps and arrived at the Alamo in February. Autry was likely among the first to die in the Mexican’s siege of the mission.
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