Pioneer James Bowie was born in Logan County, Kentucky, in 1796. He became a Mexican citizen in 1830, shortly after he moved to San Antonio, Texas, in 1828. He fought in the battle for Texas' independence in 1832 and served as a colonel in the Texas revolutionary army. James Bowie died in 1836 at the battle of the Alamo. He is credited with inventing the Bowie Knife.