Corrections? Maybe they lacked imagination, though "Willy Wet Behind the Ears" doesn't scan particularly well. Billy then managed to cut through his leg irons and steal a horse to make his escape. I walked to the head of the bed and sat down on it, beside him, near the pillow. August 10th, 2010. Garrett was able to get inside the house on July 14 and when Billy entered, Garrett shot him dead. Captured and brought in to Las Vegas, New Mexico, he was described as "in a joyous mood" He called out to an acquaintance, "Thought I jes drop in and see how you fellers in Vegas air behavin' yerselves." This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Billy-the-Kid-American-outlaw, American Heritage - Billy the Kid: From Outlaw to Legend, PBS - American Experience - The Life and Legend of Billy the Kid, Billy the Kid - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). The full-length version of the sole completely authenticated photo of Billy the Kid. Before resigning in disgrace, federal judge William Story preceded the more celebrated hanging judge Isaac Parker in Arkansas Western District. There are different accounts regarding the tip-off that brought the lawmen to Fort Sumner, the encounter at the orchard, and the moments before and after the shooting. If not, did someone else shoot the outlaw? At this point also calling himself William Bonney, he took up honest work as a cowboy for a rancher in Lincoln County named John Tunstall. In 1948, a paralegal named William V. Morrison was investigating a man named Joe Hines, a survivor of the Lincoln County War, the feud that helped make Billy the Kids name. This is a terrible place to put a fellow in.". Another hypothesis is that Billy the Kid was in fact Ollie L. (Brushy Bill) Roberts, who escaped, lived in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest, rode in Wild West shows, and died in 1950 in Hico, Texas. Memorial marking spot where Pat Garrett was killed. However, the true figure is believed to be somewhere between four and nine. WebIn the scene where Garrett gets a hot shave, he then leaves clean shaven, as Bob Dylan follows him out. In April 1878, the Regulators ambushed Brady and four of his deputies on a main street in Lincoln. One of the residents of Fort Sumner, Paco Anaya, wrote that after the shooting, Garrett handed a piece of paper to Alejandro Segura, the Justice of the Peace. Garrett tried to break the lease when he learned his creditor, W.W. Bill Cox, was financing Brazel. Related story from us: One of the men who killed Bonnie & Clyde was Bonnies secret admirer. The Washington Post One Mans Quest to Bury the Wild West Mystery of Billy the Kids Death. Henry got the better of Cahill and shot him, inflicting a wound that would kill him the next day. At the same time he served as a deputy U.S. marshal. Billy the Kid was free for just three months before his final encounter with Pat Garrett. Billy the Kid was a late 19th-century thief and gunfighter. Frank Abrams, a North Carolina attorney, first spotted the tintype photo in Asheville in 2011. But mostly because of the cattle that went missing. He added: 'People ask me all the time, what do you think its worth, what do you think its worth. A little over a year later, the New Mexico territorial legislature voted to give Garrett the $500 he was owed. The Kid was known to be friendly and personable and a smart dresser, often wearing a Mexican sombrero. Portrait of American gunman Billy the Kid (18591881). Bonney woke up and went into the kitchen, presumably to get something to eat. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. During his downtime, he liked visiting the saloon, drinking, playing cards, and other healthy diversions for a 16-year-old boy. In 1903, Garrett got into a public brawl with his employee, George Gaither. Historians say that this photo shows outlaw Billy the Kid, circled second from left, and Pat Garrett, circled far right, taken in 1880. Lets get the issue of imposters out of the way quickly. Billy the Kid was born Henry McCarty to Irish immigrants in New York City around 1859. In Hico Billy is everywhere, from a statue downtown, to the standee in the Chamber of Commerce, to the monumental arch over Robertss grave. After three years on the run and several other murders, Pat Garrett finally arrested Billy in early 1881. He continues to look into whether the Kid rightfully deserves a posthumous pardon as promised by Governor Wallace. Thereafter, Garrett was a rancher near Roswell, N.M. (188296), deputy sheriff and then sheriff of Dona Ana County, N.M. (18961902), and collector of customs at El Paso, Texas (190206). Nobody is sure of the exact date he was born but it seems to have been sometime in September 1859 because theres a baptism record for him from the end of that month. Instead, he briefly moved to Texas to serve asa Lieutenant in the Texas Rangers before returning to his ranch in New Mexico. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). He had stopped his wagon on a lonely road about four miles east of Las Cruces, New Mexico, in order to empty his bladder. Does Billy the Kid Deserve the Pardon He was Promised? Join us for a daily celebration of the worlds most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places. ), correspondent Darren Gross has come across a watchable web encoding of a Peckinpah TV drama that seems to be more or less lost. Good star performances (Jean Simmons, Bradford But he came up with a plan to get himself off by providing Governor Lew Wallace with information about the murder of a prominent lawyer that hed witnessed recently. At around the same time, Billy was hungry, so he woke up and walked towards the fresh meat that was hanging on the rafter above the porch outside of Maxwells bedroom. Believing the photo to include Billy the Kid (which would make it just the second known photo of him), Guijarro eventually found an authentication firm that verified his claim with facial recognition analysis and valued it at $5 million. A stranger named Joe Grant came into the saloon and sidled up to near the spot where Billy was drinking. There is little or no evidence to back up any of these claims. How exactly the tension mounted between Billy and Grant remains unclear (some say Billy pegged Grant for a bounty hunter come to kill him; some say Grant was a loudmouth drunk looking for a fight). On November 2, 1880, Garrett turned to law enforcement. He left his deputies outside as he entered the room in a bid to rouse his friend and question him. Some argue his book about Billy Bonney is the only reason why The Kid is remembered today. As for Billy the Kid, hes long since passed become an icon of American history, even a folk hero of sorts. Frank Abrams, who bought the photo at a flea market says experts in forensics and facial recognition have verified the picture after several months of examination, Jackson Mahomes grabs woman by the throat in security footage, Driver dead after overturned tanker truck explodes in Maryland, Ukrainian solider fighting in Bakhmut fires machine gun at Russians, Judge makes damning comments before sentencing Murdaugh for life, Aftermath of tanker explosion in Maryland seen in drone footage, Trump Jr. leads 'MAGA wrecking crew' in song for Guilfoyle's B-day, Wheel of Fortune contestant answers food puzzle wrong, Drone footage shows aftermath of petrol depot explosion in Jakarta, 17-feet of snow blankets San Bernardino mountain range, CCTV captures women leaving the flat after killing Saul Murray, Shocking moment out-of-control truck veers of the road, Russian mouthpiece claims London is now the 'main evil' during TV rant, 'Now, it's in a safe deposit box,' Abrams said on Tuesday. A few months later, Garrett married Apolinaria Gutierrez, his sister-in-law. Ethan Hawke and Dane DeHaan ride tall in Vincent DOnofrios fresh take on the saga of Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Born on New York Citys East Side, Billy as a child migrated with his parents to Kansas; his father died there, and the mother and her two boys moved to Colorado, where she remarried. On July 14, 1881, Sheriff Garrett, under the cover of shadows, shot Billy the Kid dead in a residence in Fort Sumner. The official version is that Garrett was shot and killed by Wayne Brazel, a cowboy involved in a leasing dispute with Garrett. Brazel said he shot Garrett in self-defense. He was tried and acquitted in a trial in which the only other known person at the scene of the shooting did not testify and the jury returned a verdict in 15 minutes. Several said the tintype was likely taken between 1879 and 1880, which coincides with the August 2, 1880, date someone had written on the photo,Abrams said. He was bareheaded. He died by the gun of Sherriff Pat Garrett at age 21. Richardson appointed Charles Daniels to the state Supreme Court, whom McGinn is married to. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. WebHe fled to Fort Sumner, New Mexico, where he eventually joined a gang, one of whose members was Billy the Kid.. At Stinking Springs (near present-day Taiban, New Mexico), On December 23, 1880 a posse led by Pat Garrett captured Rudabaugh, Billy the Kid, Billy Wilson, and other members of the gang.They were taken to Las Vegas, but the danger of His parents were Irish immigrants who came to America and married just after turning 20. It was a good racket, but he couldnt stay out of trouble long enough to enjoy it. Its all just part of the areas mythology. I wont put a price on it, quite frankly its priceless. Though quick with a joke, he did not hesitate before pulling the trigger. Garrett fired twice, hitting Billy once, and killing him. The next time the Kid encountered the sheriff however, it would be his last. Before he reached the bed, I whispered: Who is it, Pete? but received no reply for a moment. He soon, however, hailed his friend, who was sleeping in the room, told him to get up and make some coffee, adding: Give me a butcher knife and I will go over to Petes and get some beef; Im hungry. The Mexican arose, handed him the knife, and the Kid, hatless and in his stocking-feet, started to Maxwells, which was but a few steps distant. Little is known about Billy the Kids early days, but Yet at the same time, Billy the Kid seemed to be making an attempt at going straight. After the cease fire, McCarty and most of the Regulators fled town, but they were followed by Garrett, who wanted to cash in on the bounty on McCarty's head. In November 1950, Morrison filed a petition on behalf of Brushy Bill. Whatever happened, the answer will probably remain a secret forever. US Marshal Service How Much Did It Cost to Find Billy the Kid? He managed to locate his stepfathers place in New Mexico, where he holed up for a few weeks. Once more, Sheriff Garrett was sent after the Kid. He got in trouble for petty thefts of things like food and clothing, but things got worse when stole some pistols from a Chinese laundry in 1875 and was sent to jail. Richardson is a known Billy the Kid aficionado, and is considering the pardon because of an alleged promise by Governor Lew Wallace. In 1882, Garrett and his ghost writer, Marshall Upson, published The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid. In 2008, for instance, Bonham sold Billy's gun for $64,350. Soldier in range wars, cattle rustler, horse thief, but also universally described as charming, funny, a good singer and good dancer, at least bilingual, and an avid reader. Stahl said he thought it was a 'high probability' that it was Garrett in the photo, but he wasn't sure if another man was Billy the Kid. Out on his own, McCarty slipped across the border into Arizona Territory, which technically made him a federal fugitive from justice though the federal government didnt have a huge presence in Arizona at the time and Henry was pretty much free to do as he liked. Rumor has it that the Kid has taken a shine to Maxwells sister Paulita, though its likely shes not the only local girl to have caught his eye. There is no doubt there that Billy the Kid is one of their own, and theyre happy to tell the world. People in Hico, Texaspopulation 1,780 and home to the Billy the Kid Museumtell a slightly different version. Brazel surrendered to Deputy Sheriff Felipe Lucero in Las Cruces, shouting, Lock me up. Ive just killed Pat Garrett! Deputy Lucero locked up Brazel, called for a coroners jury, and rode to the location of the murder. For example, Billy was extremely nave on the night in question. Garrett did not seek re-election as sheriff of Lincoln County the year after McCarty's death. McGinn also says that Wallace assured Kid that he had the authority to exempt him from prosecution should he cooperate and share his knowledge, but that Wallace never held up his end of the deal. It struck me that it might be Petes brother-in-law, Manuel Abreu, who had seen Poe and McKinney, and wanted to know their business. In 1879 he married and settled in Lincoln County, N.M., where he became first deputy sheriff and then sheriff. Detail from a larger photo alleged to show Bonney (left) playing croquet in New Mexico in 1878. The months-long war came to a climax with the July 19, 1878, Battle of Lincoln, also called 'The Five-Day Battle'. Scholarly opinion is divided over whether that or William H. Bonney, Jr. (the name he used later, as in the trial), was his true name. Billy's arrest found him in Garrett's custody. New Mexico governor, Bill Richardson, has mere hours left to decide whether or not to pardon Billy the Kid in the killing of a sheriff. He then worked in Graham County as a farmhand, teamster, and cowboy. Portrait of Pat Garrett from The Story of the Outlaws. To Poes great surprise, he recognized in the camper an old friend and former partner, in Texas, named Jacobs. Either way, Billy sensed that trouble was coming and decided to head it off at the pass. When Notorious Outlaw Billy the Kid Briefly Joined a U.S. This man was Billy; he was lounging around the orchard at the same time the lawmen entered. From his first robberies to his days as a frontier gunslinger to his epic death, Billy the Kid remains perhaps the definitive legend of the Wild West. New Lincoln County Sheriff Pat Garrett and his posse captured Billy the Kid at a place called Stinking Springs on December 23, 1880. The Kid was known to be friendly and personable and a smart dresser, often wearing a Mexican sombrero. Richard Stockton is a freelance science and technology writer from Sacramento, California. They made it safely, however, and Garrett collected the $500 state bounty on Billys head. He, too, knows Fort Sumner; he had once worked for Maxwell as a ranch hand. He tried to work straight jobs (hotel worker, ranch hand) but quickly found himself on the wrong side of the law. At around 9 pm, Garrett and his deputies rode to a peach orchard in the area to chat with Maxwell. Returning to the building with pistol in one hand, knife in the other, Billy was startled and instead of opening fire, hesitated, repeatedly asking, in Spanish, "Who is it?" There were at least 26 newspaper articles written that claimed Billy was still alive after July 14, 1881. 'I don't travel with it.'. On his way to freedom, charming Billy killed two of his jailers. A photo that was bought at a flea market for $10 shows Billy the Kid standing with the lawman who would ultimately kill him, experts have concluded. Before I made the discoveries I made in my book, I did not have an opinion on Brushy Bill, says Edwards. Thinking fast, Billy told Grant that he admired his revolver and asked if he could look at it. Garrett is the man who eventually killed Billy the Kid, born as Henry McCarty. He was sentenced to hang and was then transferred to the courthouse and jail in Lincoln, but on April 28, 1881, he killed deputies James Bell and Robert Olinger and escaped. Biggest diamond EVER sold at auction sells Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, 'Vindication': Georgia Harrison on ex Stephen Bear's sentencing, Incredible footage of Ukrainian soldiers fighting Russians in Bakhmut, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' History tells us that the outlaw known as Billy the Kid (aka Henry McCarty, aka William Bonney) was gunned downat the ripe old age of 21by Sheriff Pat Pat Garrett, the sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico Territory, had been on the trail for months.In December 1880, he had brought in the infamous outlaw Billy the Once again, Billy the Kid ended up in custody. When the governors office refused to give Garrett his $500 reward (for reasons that remain unclear), local citizens chipped in and raised $7,000 for him instead. Who Killed The Sheriff Who Shot Billy the Kid? Billy the Kids life and mystique have inspired countless novels, films, and songs. Carl Adamson took Garrett to Las Cruces, New Mexico, and was soon joined by Brazel on horseback. Originally published in the August 2006 issue of American History. One of Bonneys men was killed; Bonney and the rest of his men were captured. Along with deputies Thomas McKinney and John Poe, Garrett reached the Fort on the night of July 14, 1881. Garrett rode to Maxwells house late that night and hid in Maxwells kitchen. On ABCs, Good Morning America Friday, Richardson explained that the evidence of the case simply did not warrant a pardon. Did Blues King Robert Johnson Sell His Soul To The Devil To Become The World's Greatest Musician? The violence kicked off February 1878 with the murder of John Tunstall by the members of the Jesse Evans Gang, led by the then-sheriff of Lincoln County, William Brady. He raised quickly his pistol, a self-cocker, within a foot of my breast. He did, however, manage to escape from jail and go on the run. The Kid was catapulted into legend due to the $500 bounty - then a staggering amount - on his head. I guess well just all have to anxiously await the outcome of this deceased outlaws judicial fate. With a few words, which fell like a murmur on our ears, he went to the fence, jumped it, and walked down towards Maxwells house. The pardon was on behalf of the killing of Sherriff William Brady in 1878.