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Conflicting evidence is not new to the story of the Alamo as myths and legends have been abundant since March 6, 1836, the day Santa Anna's troops toppled the Alamo and slaughtered its defenders. One that was once believed to be fact, which has since been refuted by historians, is that Bowie fell from a parapet resulting in an injury that caused his physical decline. Medically this was possible if his injury resulted in a pulmonary embolism. Emboli are often the result of a blood clot traveling from the leg to the lungs; however, they can also develop from a fatty deposit dislodging from a broken bone. If Bowie had in fact fallen from such a height, a fracture of one of his ribs, or any bone, was highly probable. Untreated emboli are fatal and the symptoms, which include shortness of breath, chest pain, and a bloody cough, present themselves with sudden onset.<ref>Carter, Interview.</ref> All of these elements fit the description of Bowie’s illness yet there has not been documentation found to substantiate him having fallen. The only documented and undisputed testimony is that Bowie was bed-ridden at the time of the assault on the Alamo.
All of Bowie's so-called nurses agreed that he was bedridden at the time of the siege, yet a soldier with Santa Anna's army denied seeing Bowie or anyone else in bed when the Mexican army stormed the compound. In his diary, ''With Santa Anna in Texas,''Jose Enrique de la Pena vividly describes the scene on the morning of March 6, 1836 as one of blood confusion and unfathomable carnage. According to de la Pena, Travis did not withdraw when the Mexican troops scaled the walls of the fortress, rather he died fighting. He described the others as "terrified defenders" who " withdrew" and " bolted and reinforced the doors."<ref>Jose Enrique de la Pena, ''With Santa Anna in Mexico,'' Carmen Perry, ed. and trans. (College Station: Texas A&M Press, 1975), 50-51.</ref>
== The Most Probable Cause ==
