Henry "Billy the Kid" Bonney (McCarty), II (1859 - 1881) - Geni Billy was never in any trouble at all. He was raised in Tarpon Springs, where he also picked up the piano in the local church. And also because he never committed most of the crimes we associate with most Wild West bad guys: He never robbed a bank or a train or held up a stagecoach. It was the newspapers who had given him a name that he would forever be known as Billy the Kid.. Some of those who witnessed the incident later claimed that McCarty acted in self-defense. "Billy the Kid", a folk song in the public domain, was published in John A. Lomax and Alan Lonax's American Ballads and Folksongs,[126] and also their Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads. If he had only waited until they let him out he would have been all right, but he was scared and ran away. The gang made their way to Lincoln County where the Boys joined forces with James Dolan, who was currently in a feud against an Englishman entrepreneur named John Tunstall and his attorney and partner Alex McSween. One bullet struck the 21-year-old near his heart, killing him instantly. Following Tunstalls death, the Kid and several other former employees organized themselves into a vigilante group called The Regulators and swore revenge. Billy the Kid first earned his reputation as a gunslinger in 1878, when he participated in a bloody frontier war in Lincoln County, New Mexico. The Kid left the war with a reputation as one of the Wests most skilled gunmen, but he remained wanted for the murder of Sheriff Brady. That same year, he adopted the alias William H. Bonney and became known as Billy the Kid or simply The Kid.. In Dolly Parton's 'Billy the Kid Makes it Big,' a Musical Dog - People There is only one known photograph of him. [8], Little is known about McCarty's origins, but many reputable scholars of western history "contend that he was born on the eve of the Civil War in the bowels of an Irish neighborhood in New York City (70 Allen Street). He then met up with a horse thief name John Mackie who taught him the tricks of the trade and the two became partners. Take your pick. When Tunstall realized he couldn't fight his enemies the legal way due to the bias Judge Bristol and Governor Sam Axtell, Tunstall decided to fight fire with fire and hired his own gunmen. There are some exc. When Cahill fell over the Kid squirmed free, ran off, and mounted the nearest horse and fled Camp Grant. While in Fort Sumner, he would kill a drunk at a saloon (6), but the killing was shrugged off and got almost no attention, but unfortunately, the Kid got into more serious trouble that did get plenty of attention. To date, no results of the DNA tests have been made public. Or maybe William Bonney. The journey begins with Billy's mother Catherine McCarty Catherine Bonney arrived in New York City by way of Devonshire, England in 1846. The Kid was successful in getting a drop on the lone guard, Deputy James Bell, by slipping his hand out of the handcuffs and using the heavy restraints to hit the deputy over the head. Little is known about Billy the Kids early days, but he was most likely born Henry McCarty in the Irish slums of New York City sometime in late 1859. [57] The incident had the effect of further alienating the public, given that many local residents "admired the way Roberts put up a gutsy fight against overwhelming odds". The Kid asked Grant if he could see his ivory handled revolver and, while looking at the weapon, rotated the cylinder so the hammer would fall on the empty chamber when the trigger was pulled. [53] The wanted men, Bill Morton and Frank Baker, attempted to flee, but they were captured on March 6. There were other outlaws and rustlers in New Mexico, much worse than Billy the Kid, but the Kid had gain fame and was singled out by the newspapers who had built him up into something he wasnt. #billythekid. Quin es?" At first the deputized Regulators tried to do things legally by serving warrants, but with the prejudice Sheriff Brady and the bias court system, they couldnt count on justice being served. On November 30, 1880, Billy the Kid's Gang, David Anderson, aka Billy . Billy the Kid Biography - life, family, name, death, mother, young Hardly a moron, Billy received at least some formal schooling while he lived in Silver City, New Mexico. [66] Roberts, however, refused to be taken alive, even after he suffered a severe bullet wound to the chest. [66][68] Four other Regulators were wounded in the skirmish. In 1949, a paralegal named William Morrison located a man in West Texas named Ollie P. Roberts (nicknamed "Brushy Bill"), who claimed to be Billy the Kid and challenged the popular account of Billy's slaying at the hands of Pat Garrett in 1881. Billy "The Kid" Emerson was a songwriter, singer, producer, and afterward, a Rev. The family moved to Silver City in Grant County, located in southern New Mexico. [38] It is unclear how long McCarty rode with the gang of rustlers known as "the Boys", but reliable sources indicate that he soon turned up at the house of Heiskell Jones in the Pecos Valley,[39] New Mexico. Also known as: Brushy Bill, Henry McCarty, William H. Bonney, Jr. 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. Last of the Desperados (1955) "[41], In the Autumn of 1877, McCarty (now widely known as Bonney) moved to Lincoln County, New Mexico, and was first hired by Doc Scurlock and Charlie Bowdre to work in their cheese factory. The war was over; the Regulators disbanded and the Kid was now a fugitive. Lucky Billy: a novel about Billy the Kid is a 2008 novel by John Vernon, a professor at Binghamton University. Early in life, he adopted the nickname Billy the Kid. After a short stint working on the ranch of Henry Hooker, McCarty began working on the Coe-Saunders ranch. Added as an immortal to Michael Scott's series Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel during the third book The Sorceress. [65], On April 4, in what became known as the Gunfight of Blazer's Mills, the Regulators sought the arrest of an old buffalo hunter known as Buckshot Roberts, whom they suspected of involvement in the Tunstall slaying. Meet The Cast Of "Billy The Kid" - TVOvermind Garrett may have deliberately been waiting in the dark to shoot the Kid. He would have been a successful man under other circumstances. Even in death Billy the Kid is likeable and he has a large following with people all over the word. Thus, the Regulators "went from lawmen to outlaws". Footnote 2: Its my guess that Billy the Kids stepfather never legally adopted his stepsons, since the Kid would also be referred to by his last name McCarty in Silver City. Henry McCarty, better known as Billy the Kid, but also known by the aliases Henry Antrim and William H. Bonney (reportedly November 23, 1859 July 14, 1881), was a 19th century American frontier outlaw and gunman who participated in the Lincoln County War. [34] Years later, Louis Abraham, who had known McCarty in Silver City but was not a witness, denied that anyone was killed in this altercation. By 1871, Catherine was diagnosed with Tuberculosis and was told to move to a climate that was warmer and drier. [61], Unfazed, the Regulators planned to settle a score with Sheriff William J. Brady, who had arrested McCarty and fellow deputy Fred Waite in the aftermath of Tunstall's murder. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), Cowboys & Outlaws:The Real Billy the Kid, https://www.history.com/news/9-things-you-may-not-know-about-billy-the-kid, 9 Things You May Not Know About Billy the Kid. In the late 1940s, an elderly Texas man known as Brushy Bill Roberts even claimed to be Billy the Kid in the flesh, but his story was largely discredited after family records revealed his birthdate to be 1879. Various accounts recorded by friends and acquaintances describe him as fun-loving and jolly, articulate in both his writing and his speech, and loyal to those for whom he cared. Some of the most famous actors to play the Kid include Roy Rogers, Paul Newman, Val Kilmer and Emilio Estevez. Were Abrana Garcia and Billy the Kid MARRIED!!?? - YouTube Another individual who allegedly claimed to be Billy the Kid was John Miller, whose family supported his claim in 1938, some time after Miller's death. The Boy from Oklahoma (1954), with Tyler MacDuff in the role of Billy the Kid[123]. Billy the Kid has been the subject and inspiration for many popular works, including: Billy The Kid (1958), a serial poem by Jack Spicer. This nineteen or twenty year old lived a short life but made a lasting impression. Abrana Garcia lived in Fort Sumner at the time Billy the Kid frequented the town. 58 Otero's Depression-era embrace of the Kid as a "social bandit" must be understood as a twentieth-century expression of political and cultural sentiments, rather than a rigorously researched documentation of the feelings of all Hispanos during the Kid's lifetime. The Kid worked his hand free to his revolver and fired it into Cahills gut. Since there were now two Billies in the household, the Kids mother referred to him by his middle name, he was now Henry McCarty-Antrim (2). The Kid now had to earn his own keep, so he was put to work washing dishes and waiting on tables at a restaurant. While the evidence shows that Billy lived on, it does not appear that Brushy Bill Roberts was Billy the Kid. On April 28, while Garrett was out of town, McCarty stunned the territory by killing both of his guards and escaping. [112] When a reporter reminded Wallace that the Kid was depending on Wallace's intervention, the governor supposedly smiled and said, "Yes, but I can't see how a fellow like him can expect any clemency from me". Now the Dolan side struck back. [97] Realizing that they had no hope of escape, the besieged and hungry outlaws finally surrendered later that day and were allowed to join in the meal. Billy the Kid - DesertUSA The Kid wrote to the governor that he was tired of running and would surrender to authorities and testify against the Dolan side to have his murder charges dropped. [9][10] Some genealogists argue, however, that the future outlaw was born William Henry Bonney, the son of William Harrison Bonney and wife Katherine Boujean, paternal grandson of Levi Bonney and wife Rhoda Pratt and great-grandson of Obadiah Pratt, who in turn were the Grandparents of Mormon leader Parley P. Pratt, making him and McCarty first cousins once removed. Billy The Kid, The Most Notorious Outlaw Of The Wild West - All That's Lincoln is. He always found a touch of humor in everything, being naturally full of fun and jollity. When McCarty arrived, Garrett was waiting behind Paulita's bed and shot the Kid. Tunstalls ranch hands then formed a vigilante group called the Regulators. Now the war was on. The Illegal Rebirth of Billy the Kid is a science fiction novel by Rebecca Ore, published in 1991. Tom Sullivan, a former sheriff of Lincoln County, and Steve Sederwall, a former mayor of Capitan, disinterred the bones of John Miller in May 2005. The Kid divided the men into two groups, he lead his party out the door first and ran in one direction so as to draw the line of fire towards them so McSweens party could make a run in another direction and get away. [46] After murdering Tunstall, the gunmen shot down his prized bay horse. She resided at 199 North East Street and it was there she met and began a long term relationship with a man named William Antrim, a twenty-three year old labor and teamster who lived a few blocks away. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The Kid fled to one of his foster families and they put him on a stagecoach to Clifton, Arizona where his stepfather was living, but when he found his stepfather he didnt want him and told the Kid to leave. 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. A more likely explanation, however, was his slender physique, "which placed him in precarious situations with bigger and stronger boys".[24]. According to one version of events, Carlyle heard a shot that had been fired accidentally outside. Footnote 8: Its of great speculation whether or not the Kid was armed with a gun. Billy the Kid, 1930 widescreen film directed by King Vidor and starring Johnny Mack Brown as Billy and Wallace Beery as Pat Garrett.[121]. 5 Fast Facts About Billy the Kid | Mental Floss The 2003 Discovery Channel Quest, Billy the Kid: Unmasked, investigated the life and death of Billy the Kid through forensic science. Blyth previously appeared in Benediction. It was released in May 1992 as the third single from his 1991 album Billy Dean. Geni requires JavaScript! Please enable JavaScript in your browser's settings to use this part of Geni. [72] The only casualty was Dutch Charley Kruling, a Dolan man wounded by a rifle slug fired by George Coe at a distance of 440 paces. [43], Late in 1877, McCarty, along with Brewer, Bowdre, Scurlock, the Coes and the Saunders, was hired as a cattle guard by John Tunstall, an English cattle rancher, banker and merchant, and his partner, Alexander McSween, a prominent lawyer. The outlaw was found guilty of the murder of Sheriff William Brady and confined to the Lincoln courthouse. Chisum, 1970 movie starring John Wayne as John Chisum, dealing with Billy the Kid's involvement in the Lincoln County War. [25] Two days after McCarty was placed in jail, the teenager escaped by worming his way up the jailhouse chimney. Reliable accounts suggest McCarty retaliated by drawing his gun and shooting Cahill, who died the next day. Most recently explored in the Discovery Channel documentary, Billy the Kid: Unmasked, this theory contends that Garrett went to the bedroom of Pedro Maxwell's sister, Paulita, and bound and gagged her in her bed. Billy the Kid, byname of William H. Bonney, Jr., original name Henry McCarty?, (born November 23, 1859?, New York, New York, U.S.died July 14, 1881, Fort Sumner, New Mexico), American outlaw who was one of the most notorious gunfighters of the American West. [130], Billy Joel's song The Ballad of Billy the Kid, a historically inaccurate re-telling of Billy the Kid's life, off of his 1973 album Piano Man. In what became known as the Lincoln County War, the Regulators assassinated Sheriff Brady and spent the next several months shooting it out with The Houses forces. and killed him. [52] After being deputized by rancher Richard "Dick" Brewer, Tunstall's foreman, who had been appointed a special constable and given the warrant to arrest Tunstall's killers, they proceeded to the Murphy-Dolan store. Brushy Bill Roberts: The Man Who Claimed To Be Billy The Kid Although the popularity of the first story persists, and portrays Garrett in a better light, many historians contend that the second version is probably the accurate one. Billy the Kid, 1941 remake of the 1930 film, starring Robert Taylor and Brian Donlevy. The Kid didnt stick around to face murder charges and left Arizona and returned to New Mexico. When it didnt fire, the Kid drew his own gun and shot Grant dead. [35], Deluvina Maxwell, a friend of Billy the Kid, stated: "Garrett was afraid to go back in the room to make sure of whom he had shot. The feud then turned into an all out war. "In the time that the Kid roamed the land he chided Hispanic villagers who were fearful of standing up to the big ranchers who stole their land, water, and way of life".[106]. The conflict centered on a business rivalry. [78] After a five-day siege, McSween's house was set on fire by the sheriff's posse. When the boy was placed in jail and escaped, he was not bad, just scared. Most historians reject Brushy Bill's claim, although his argument was not entirely bereft of supporting evidence. [108] Recognizing McCarty's voice, Garrett drew his own pistol and fired twice, the first bullet striking McCarty just above his heart, killing him. As for Billy the Kid's biological father, there is absolutely nothing known about him -not even a name. Although he claimed to have killed 21 men, the actual number is likely less than 10. The tombstone has been stolen and recovered three times since it was set in place in the 1940s, and the entire gravesite is now enclosed within a steel cage. After a year of no parental guidance and looking out for himself, the Kid quickly fell in with the wrong crowd. He was not a cold-blooded killer, nor was he a robber of trains or banks. Footnote 5: The Regulators were particular bitter towards Bill Morton, because he led the posse that murdered Tunstall and was one of those that shot him. Contemporaries described him as a "neat" dresser who favored an "unadorned Mexican sombrero". Miller was buried at the state-owned Pioneers' Home Cemetery in Prescott, Arizona. A wanted poster for Billy the Kid, circa 1877. It happened when a posse from White Oaks surrounded the Kid and his gang at a station house, during the standoff the posse accidentally killed their own deputy, James Carlyle. The young gunslinger stole the occasional horse, but he never once held up a bank, train or even a stagecoach. [81], In the Autumn of 1878, a former Union Army general, Lew Wallace, became Governor of the New Mexico Territory. He became handy with a Winchester rifle and a Colt revolver, and in August 1877 he killed his first man during a dispute in an Arizona saloon. McCarty greeted the governor with a revolver in one hand and a Winchester rifle in the other. When the men began to run out of the burning house the Dolan side opened fire and all hell broke loose. His role in the LCW was minor -he wasnt the leader but a follower. He is arrested and jailed in Lincoln County for possessing horses belonging to cattleman John Tunstall. Billy the Kids real name was William Henry McCarty (1), when and where he was born, or who or what happened to his father is not known. Purgatory (film), Uli Edel's 1999 made for TV movie starring Donnie Wahlberg as Deputy Glen/Billy The Kid. His position was further undermined by a string of negative newspaper editorials that referred to him as "Billy the Kid". Bonney. These qualities, along with his cunning and celebrated skill with firearms, contributed to his paradoxical image, as both a notorious outlaw and beloved folk hero. The gun clicked and then the Kid had his turn but his gun went BANG. One day while at a saloon in Camp Grant, Arizona, the Kid who was about sixteen at the time, got into serious trouble. If his spectacular escape wasn't enough, his controversial death was the final dramatic ending to his story. Ry Cooder recorded the folk song "Billy the Kid", on the album Into The Purple Valley,[129] with his own melody and instrumental. [54][55][56] During their journey to Lincoln, the Regulators also killed one of their own members, a man named McCloskey, whom they suspected of being a traitor. [65] There is some doubt as to whether McCarty and McSween were even acquainted at the time of Brady's death. He never seemed to care for money, except to buy cartridges with. [86] Grant, who did not realize he was playing poker with McCarty, boasted that he would kill "Billy the Kid" if he ever encountered him. Genealogist and historian Susan Stevenson talks to Michael about the extensive work she's done rebuilding William H. Bonney's family tree. Wallis wrote in 2007 that McCarty was ambidextrous. No sooner had he woken Maxwell than the Kid also approached the house, having stopped nearby to get beef for a late dinner. The next day Billy the Kid was buried at the Fort Sumner cemetery near his two fallen companions, Tom OFolliard and Charlie Bowdre. Billy the Kid is one of the most notorious Wild West outlaws, which is especially impressive because he had to fit all his outlawing into just 21 years of life. He was killed not for who he really was, but for what people thought he was. Jon Bon Jovi's album Blaze of Glory, used as part of the soundtrack for Young Guns II, and featured the song "Billy Get Your Gun". On December 19, McCarty barely escaped a midnight ambush in Fort Sumner, which left one member of the gang, Tom O'Folliard, dead. Billy stood with us to the end, brave and reliable, one of the best soldiers we had. We Communicated w/a Ghost Outlaw & Billy The Kid's Enemy - YouTube [11] It is generally believed that McCarty's Mother was a survivor of the Great Irish Famine of the mid-19th century. There have been various books published with different information. Since the end of the Lincoln County War, the Kid spent the next two years eluding the law and living in and around Fort Sumner (a former military fort transformed into a tiny Mexican village). Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. [96] Mistaken for McCarty, he was shot down by the posse. Requiem for Billy the Kid, Anne Feinsilber's 2006 motion picture starring Kris Kristofferson. Henry McCarty; aka Billy the Kid; aka Willian H Bonney (he used his grandfather's name). a 19th century American frontier outlaw and gunman who participated in the Lincoln County War. The Death Of Billy The Kid, 1881 - EyeWitness to History "As [McCarty] was leaving the saloon, his back turned to Grant, he heard a distinct click. 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. Bill Richardson to. The other guard Bob Olinger was across the street having dinner when he heard the gunshots. He was an outlaw, of course he lied! The Kid took Tunstalls offer. It's not known Until the death of his mother in 1874, Billy led a fairly normal life . Upon the Kid's release, however, the. Billy The Kid - Living Along The Ancient Way DC shooting Gold heist The Power of Water 'Rust' shooting Photo of Billy the Kid and His Killer Uncovered at Flea Market, Owner Says Frank Abrams is working with experts to verify if the photo he bought at a North Carolina flea market is really of Billy the Kid posing in a group with Pat Garrett. [89] A posse member named James Carlyle[90] ventured into the house under a white flag, in an effort to negotiate the group's surrender. Our family looks favorably on Billy, we have some stories of him from our Jaramillo cousins. [9] There is clear evidence that his Mother's name was Catherine McCarty, although "there have been continuing debates about whether McCarty was her maiden or married name". As a child, Billy the Kid went under the name of Henry McCarty. The feud would be famously known as the Lincoln County War (4). A matter of fact, Billy the Kid is known as the Old West's most favorite outlaw. The Kid felt betrayed when he learned that Governor Wallace didnt have the power to pardon him without Rynersons cooperation, nor was the governor pressuring the attorney to collaborate.
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