One Hapless Cowboy
Henry McCarty, or as he was later known, Billy the Kid, may not have been perfect, but he wasn’t the bloodthirsty outlaw that several others in his time became. Looking deeper into his life as a bandit, it’s clear that in many circumstances, he was the victim of simple misfortune. While he certainly enjoyed life on the other side of the law, most of his issues came from being in the wrong place at the wrong time—even at the bitter end.
1. His Birthday Is Unknown
Ever since he left his mark on the Old West, the story of Billy the Kid has been told time and time again, often taking poetic license to exaggerate certain details or fill in the blanks. This may have been necessary in specific instances, for example, when it comes to the beginning of his story. The known facts are that Henry McCarty was born in 1859 to Catherine and Patrick McCarty, but the exact date and place of his birth are still debated to this day.
Even early on, he knew very little stability.
2. She Met Someone Else
While it’s not completely clear when, Henry’s father passed sometime before 1870, after which his mother took the children to Indiana. There, she met William Henry Harrison Antrim, and the two were immediately taken with each other, moving to Kansas that year and marrying in 1873.
Sadly, he wasn’t in it for the long run.
3. They Were Alone
The marriage between William Antrim and Catherine would last a little over a year before he decided he couldn’t handle it. Part of this was likely because Catherine had developed a severe case of tuberculosis, and soon enough, William ran off. Tragically, Catherine passed not long after on September 16, 1874, leaving Henry and his brother Joseph on their own.
Naturally, he had to make money somehow.
4. He Became A Thief
Following Catherine’s passing, at the age of 14, Henry moved into a boarding house owned by Sarah Brown. Although she provided him with room and board, he apparently needed more and soon turned to thievery. Starting out by taking some food, he quickly escalated to stealing clothing and two firearms from a Chinese laundry with a friend of his.
This was his first run-in with the law.
5. They Couldn’t Hold Him
It wasn’t long after this early incident that the law caught up with Henry, charging him with theft and finding him guilty. The authorities then incarcerated him, but may have underestimated his innate ability to get out of a bad situation. Only two days into his imprisonment, he escaped and started a life on the run.
Of course, what sort of bandit doesn’t have an accomplice or two?
6. He Made A Friend
After escaping his incarceration, Henry fled to Arizona and found work where he could, often on ranches. However, he had gotten a taste of living outside the law and wasn’t finished with the idea. Shortly after his relocation, he met a former US Cavalryman named John R Mackie, and the two began stealing horses together.
Soon, the public became more familiar with Henry.
7. He Got A Nickname
Living as a fugitive, it was a smart idea to leave the name “Henry McCarty” behind, a change that came easily enough for him. Due to his youthful appearance and demeanor, the authorities took to calling him “Kid Antrim” in connection with his stepfather. Following this, he also assumed the alias of William H Bonney around 1877.
Suddenly, his actions became more violent.
8. He Fought Someone
Henry—now going by Bonney—didn’t exactly stay out of trouble, but things got worse in the summer of 1877. During an argument with a blacksmith named Francis P Cahill, who often antagonized the younger boy, Cahill knocked Bonney down. Bonney’s revolver flew out, and Cahill reached for it, causing a struggle that ended with the blacksmith receiving a fatal shot.
Once again, the law was hot on Bonney’s trail.
9. He Was Caught
Although Cahill had been the primary aggressor, and a witness later stated that Bonney “had no choice” but to shoot him, Bonney knew the law wouldn’t see it that way. While he ran away initially, a local justice of the peace named Miles Wood captured him and locked him in a guardhouse until the authorities got there, at which point Bonney had already escaped.
Fortunately, Bonney had some people he could rely on.
10. They Helped Him
Stealing a horse and leaving Arizona, Bonney ran into trouble when a group of Apache people took the horse themselves. Finally, after reaching Fort Stanton in New Mexico on foot, Bonney practically crawled to the home of John Jones, a member of the Seven Rivers Warriors gang. He found shelter here, and Jones’ mother healed Bonney as best she could.
But these weren’t the only friends he had.
11. He Joined A Gang
Nursed back to health, Bonney left Fort Stanton and headed south, where he again became involved with some shady folks. Joining a gang known as “The Boys,” he participated in their illicit activities, which mostly consisted of raiding nearby cattle herds. This was one of his earliest moments of publicity, since a Silver City newspaper covered the gang’s wrongdoings.
Still, he would soon go back to doing honest work—sort of.
12. They Were Enemies
Bonney found more ranch work in New Mexico under an English businessman named John Tunstall in what used to be Lincoln County. However, Tunstall and his business partner, Alexander McSween, had a problem. An alliance of three Irish-American businessmen held political and financial influence over the county, leaving Tunstall and McSween their bitter rivals.
Unfortunately, tensions between them only rose.
13. He Was In Debt
Tunstall and McSween were clearly at a disadvantage in their vendetta against the Irish-Americans, especially since McSween owed one of them—James Dolan—$8,000. To add insult to injury, Dolan obtained a court order to transfer ownership of McSween's assets to him, along with $40,000 worth of Tunstall’s livestock and other property.
This is where Bonney comes in.
14. He Was Given A Job
Dolan’s addition of Tunstall’s property in his court order was likely a mistake, but Tunstall wasn’t about to take any chances. Gathering nine of his prime horses, he tasked Bonney with transferring them to his ranch and watching over them until everything blew over. As he could probably sense, something big was coming.
15. He Faced Them
As it happened, the authorities were still intent on going through with seizing Tunstall’s property, whether the order to do so had been in error or not. Therefore, Sheriff William J Brady rounded up a posse and went to Tunstall’s ranch, prompting the Englishman to come out and meet them. This quickly led to an altercation in which Tunstall was fatally shot.
Bonney wasn’t going to let this go.
16. He Joined Up
Although none of Tunstall’s allies were with him when he perished, many of them witnessed the event from afar and wanted justice. Soon after, they and several citizens formed a group called the Regulators, which became more than just a local gang. Sympathizing with their cause, John B Wilson, the county justice of the peace, deputized the group.
With this new authority, Bonney took matters into his own hands.
17. They Went To The Authorities
Even though it was the Wild West, Tunstall’s demise at the hands of Sheriff Brady’s posse was still considered unlawful, and Bonney tried to do something about it. With a fellow ranch-hand and Regulator named Richard Brewer, Bonney spoke to the justice of the peace, who granted a warrant for Brady’s capture.
This didn’t work out for them.
18. They Were Captured
With warrants in hand, Bonney and two others searched for Brady and his men, but the Sheriff found him first. After a brief altercation, Bonney once again found himself in handcuffs as Sheriff Brady took him and his two companions into custody. However, Bonney had friends in high places.
19. They Got Out
As Bonney and his companions were acting lawfully to capture Sheriff Brady, some saw their resulting imprisonment as unjustifiable. Before long, a group of US servicemen under Deputy US Marshal Robert Widenmann—who happened to be Bonney’s friend—came to their rescue. Widenmann freed the Regulators and took Brady’s men into custody, but Brady was gone.
Now, it was their turn to strike.
20. They Surprised Them
The whole conflict came to a head on April 1, 1878, as Sheriff Brady and his men were walking down the street before Bonney and several other Regulators emerged. A chaotic shootout commenced, during which Sheriff Brady and a couple of his men perished, and Bonney received a wound to his thigh.
Suddenly, he was back on the other side of the law.
21. They Were Wanted
Before the fight that led to his demise, Sheriff Brady had gone to New Mexico’s Governor Samuel B Axtell for help. Axtell decided that the county justice of the peace had been unlawfully appointed, and therefore, his deputization of the Regulators and issuing of warrants against Brady were also unlawful.
This meant that Bonney and the other Regulators were fugitives, so they went into hiding.
22. They Posted Up
Now on the run, Bonney and the others traveled to Lincoln, arriving on July 14. That day, they spread out and set up in the buildings around town, hoping to evade the law as long as possible. Unfortunately, Brady’s replacement had arrived and taken the case—a former Union Army man named George Peppin.
By this point, the new Sheriff knew he had become outmatched.
23. He Called For Help
Upon taking his new position, George Peppin realized how quickly this conflict had become a full-scale battle. To end the whole affair, Peppin and his men brought the fight to the Regulators—who may have had a chance if Colonel Dudley and his men from Fort Stanton hadn’t arrived at Peppin’s request and overwhelmed them.
Suddenly, the authorities decided to play dirty.
24. They Smoked Them Out
Now on the back foot, the Regulators had no choice but to retreat from what became known as the Battle of Lincoln. As they all piled into McSween’s house for refuge, two of the Sheriff’s men decided to set fire to the house. Once again cornered, the surviving Regulators fled the building, and fortunately for Bonney, he was able to get away entirely.
However, even though he tried, Bonney couldn’t stay out of trouble.
26. They Were Accused
Bonney’s only confirmed involvement at the Mescalero Indian Agency was that he and three others were nearby, yet the courts indicted them all for the slaying. This was also despite evidence showing that a constable named Atanacio Martinez had been responsible. To make matters worse, the court retracted the indictments against Bonney’s companions, but not him.
This had lasting consequences.
27. He Was Excluded
In late 1878, a change in government would finally deliver some vindication to all the former Regulators—well, almost all of them. Lew Wallace, the new governor of New Mexico, decided to grant amnesty to all involved in the conflict following John Henry Tunstall’s demise. However, as Bonney had been indicted since then, he couldn’t receive this amnesty.
Unfortunately, unlucky incidents became commonplace for Bonney.
28. They Were Witnesses
The following year, Bonney and one other former Regulator once again seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and found themselves in a horrible situation. Back in Lincoln, an attorney named Huston Chapman received a fatal shot on February 18, before his body was set on fire—and Bonney witnessed the whole thing.
To his credit, he didn’t run.
29. He Tried To Help
Likely to avoid repeating events, Bonney contacted Governor Wallace to explain what had actually happened. Later, a witness would report that a different outlaw named Jesse Evans had committed the act, forcing Bonney and his friend to watch the whole thing. Before relaying this, however, Bonney requested that the Governor grant him amnesty in exchange.
Governor Wallace countered.
30. He Offered A Deal
Not long after Bonney wrote the governor, Wallace responded, and the two met a couple of days later in secret. After Bonney relayed his version of events, Wallace seemed sympathetic and agreed to his terms, under one condition. He promised both clemency and protection if Bonney would testify before a grand jury.
How could Bonney say no?
31. He Agreed
In addition to asking him to testify in court, Wallace wrote to Bonney and suggested that they peacefully detain him for his own safety. Desperate for the amnesty given to his fellow Regulators, Bonney agreed both to testify and submit himself for detainment. The next day, he allowed Sheriff George Kimball to take him in.
Of course, not everyone was being truthful.
32. They Changed Their Mind
Bonney upheld his end of the bargain, testifying against Jesse Evans before a grand jury, but it wasn’t his integrity that was questionable. Once the authorities had gotten what they needed from him, the district attorney decided not to honor the arrangement and continued to detain Bonney.
But as we now know, keeping Bonney locked up is harder than they think.
33. He Caught On
Whether Bonney was too trusting or didn’t realize what was happening, he remained imprisoned for several weeks before realizing something fishy was going on. Concluding that Governor Wallace never intended to free him, he again escaped his incarceration on June 17 and fled from Lincoln.
Still, the law wasn’t done with him.
34. He Found Trouble
Bonney spent the rest of the year mostly keeping to himself and staying off the radar of law enforcement until one day, when he wound up in another difficult bind. On January 10, 1880, a man named Joe Grant was fatally shot in Fort Sumner, New Mexico, and—unlike previous incidents—Bonney was unequivocally the culprit.
That didn’t mean the situation was black and white.
35. He Tricked Him
A local paper reported that “Billy Bonney, more extensively known as 'the Kid',” had shot Joe Grant, but the story was more complex. According to several accounts, Grant was out for Bonney’s blood, so Bonney approached him at a local saloon. Asking to see Grant’s revolver, Bonney secretly spun its cylinder to fire on an empty chamber, so when Grant took it back and tried to shoot, nothing happened—then Bonney returned the favor.
At this point, he seemed all in on the bandit’s life.
36. He Made More Friends
Later in 1880, Bonney found another group of outlaws to join through the friendship of rancher Jim Greathouse, who got him in contact with a bandit named Dave Rudabaugh. That November, Rudabaugh and his gang got the attention of Deputy James Carlysle, and later a lawman named Pat Garrett, who both discovered Bonney’s attachment to them.
It was only a matter of time before the law caught up to him again, though.
37. He Put A Price On His Head
Bonney’s infamy had grown significantly in only a couple of years, with the Las Vegas Gazette referring to him as Billy the Kid for the first time on December 3, 1880. Shortly after, Governor Wallace saw fit to post a $500 bounty for his capture. However, a little over a week later, Pat Garrett found and captured Bonney along with three others, including Rudabaugh.
He wouldn’t escape so easily this time.
38. They Were Taken Away
Billy the Kid and the rest of his gang had given themselves up to Pat Garrett, so while locked in shackles, they traveled with him to Fort Sumner. From there, Garrett took them to Las Vegas, New Mexico, where a large crowd of spectators came to see the notorious outlaws as they arrived the day after Christmas.
Despite all this, Billy remained unfazed.
39. He Was Calm And Collected
Billy became quite an experienced outlaw, but it’s important to note he was only about 21 at this time. As such, he kept his trademark youthful confidence and laissez-faire attitude. When the Las Vegas Gazette interviewed him and asked why he was so calm, he replied, “What's the use of looking on the gloomy side of everything? The laugh's on me this time.”
However, others weren’t laughing.
40. They Were Furious
Garrett planned to take Billy and the other outlaws to Santa Fe, but something halted their departure—though nothing of Billy’s doing. An angry mob led by Deputy Sheriff Romero confronted Garrett, demanding that he give them Dave Rudabaugh to answer for his slaying of another deputy in April.
However, Garrett didn’t want to lose control of the situation.
41. He Refused
The deputy and his mob of revenge-seekers were all carrying arms, so Garrett couldn’t simply turn them away. To avoid the argument turning into bloodshed, Garrett instead allowed the deputy and two others to come along and petition the Governor themselves for Rudabaugh’s release to them.
Following this, Billy tried to play nice.
42. He Pleaded With Him
Although Wallace had proven to be untrustworthy before, Billy had no choice but to, hopefully, appeal to his human nature. Being incarcerated for several months, he spent much of his time writing to the Governor and asking him to grant him clemency. As expected, Wallace declined this request.
Without further option, Billy faced the music.
43. He Was Tried
Appearing in court on April 8, 1881, the trial against Billy the Kid took two days before the jury decided on a guilty verdict concerning the slaying of Sheriff William J Brady. Becoming the only person involved in the Lincoln County conflict to receive a conviction, Billy also received his sentence a few days later—execution by hanging.
Of course, it wasn’t scheduled to happen immediately—buying Billy some time.
44. He Was Left Behind
The judge had set Billy’s hanging to happen a month later on May 13, so in the meantime, authorities took him back to where it all began—Lincoln. Despite everything, they still underestimated the Kid, especially on April 28. Taking five of Billy’s fellow prisoners, Deputy Bob Olinger went to grab a bite to eat, leaving Billy and Deputy James Bell alone.
Billy seized his opportunity.
45. He Slipped Away
Fortunately for Billy, Deputy Bell didn’t seem the brightest and had no problems taking him to the outhouse at his request. On their way back, in quick succession, Billy hid behind a corner, got one hand free of his handcuffs, and used them to beat the deputy before taking his revolver and firing at Bell, who perished instantly.
He wasn’t out of the woods yet, though.
46. He Freed Himself
With his legs still shackled, Billy then broke into Garrett's office and took a loaded shotgun that was left behind by Olinger. He waited at the upstairs window for Olinger to coming running after hearing the gunshot that killed Bell.
When Billy finally saw Olinger coming, he called out a chilling warning.
47. He Took Him Out
Just as Olinger approached, Billy called out to him, "Look up, old boy, and see what you get". When Olinger looked up, Billy shot him. With those two out of the way, Billy then found an axe and used it to break out of his leg shackles. After taking someone’s horse, he then fled Lincoln for the last time. According to a few accounts, his demeanor hadn’t changed, as townsfolk could hear him singing as he rode off.
To catch Billy again, Garrett took a different approach.
48. He Met His Friend
Pat Garrett spent the next three months searching for Billy, who had all but vanished until rumors spread of him showing up near Fort Sumner. Not only that, but Billy had a friend in the area named Pete Maxwell, so on July 14, Garrett paid Maxwell a visit to inquire about the outlaw’s location.
Maxwell was all too eager to help—and their unexpected meeting a whole surprise of its own.
49. They Spoke At Length
Pete Maxwell may have been Billy’s friend, but they clearly weren’t too close, as Maxwell welcomed Garrett into his home. The two of them sat together and spoke for the rest of the day, and whether or not Maxwell gave up Billy’s location, it didn’t matter in the end, since Billy suddenly walked right in to both of their surprise.
50. He Couldn’t See
As per the widely accepted version of events, Billy walked into his friend’s bedroom, where Garrett and Pete Maxwell were, but it had gotten too dark. At first, Billy couldn’t recognize Garrett and vice versa, until the Kid drew his revolver and asked, "¿Quién es?” meaning, “Who is it?” Knowing it was Billy, Garrett also produced a revolver and fired twice at him.
Thus ended the story of Billy the Kid—or did it?
51. He May Have Faked It
Like any infamous outlaw, the circumstances surrounding Billy’s demise grew into legend, with certain details being changed or embellished. However, since then, some have posited that none of it happened in the first place. A popular theory surfaced that claimed Garrett and Billy had become friends, and the lawman faked the whole incident at the Maxwell house to help the Kid get away scot-free.
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