Bowie, << BOH ee or BOO ee, >> James (1796?-1836), became known for his role in the Texas Revolution. He also was the reputed inventor of a hunting knife called the bowie knife.
Bowie was a figure of the frontier whose career gave rise to legends which now make it difficult for historians to sift facts from folklore. Scholars disagree on both his birthdate and birthplace, but he was probably born in 1796 in Kentucky. The Bowie family moved westward with the frontier. Bowie reached San Antonio, Texas, about 1828, and became a Mexican citizen within two years. He became a prospector and a land speculator. He is said to have engaged in the smuggling of slaves along the Texas-Louisiana border. There is also a hint that he became associated with the Laffite pirates (see Laffite, Jean ). It is known that he lived the rough life of the border. He was injured in a gunfight and engaged in numerous battles with the Indians.
Bowie is probably remembered mostly for his contribution to the manufacture of a dangerously effective hunting knife. He is said to have introduced the long bolster, a perpendicular piece adjoining the handle, to a hunting knife to make it an effective defensive weapon. It is said that he added the bolster because he lost his grip on a butcher knife in an Indian fight.
Bowie fought in the Texas Revolution (see Texas (History) ). He became known for fighting with the Texas resistance movement at Nacogdoches, Texas, in 1832, and in other early struggles in the revolt against Mexico. He became a colonel in 1835 in a campaign that cleared San Antonio, Texas, of the Mexican Army. He later fought with William Travis, Davy Crockett, and the force that fell in the Alamo (see Alamo ).
