The gunslingers of the American frontier are an integral part of American history. Their stories of adventure and nefarious activities are legendary and they paint a picture of what it was like to live in the Wild West. One of the most infamous was Billy the Kid, one of the most famous outlaws of all time.
Little is known about the Kid’s childhood. He was born William Henry McCarty in 1859 in New York, and his father died just before the Civil War ended and his mother died of tuberculosis when he was 15 years old. Left orphaned, he turned to a life of crime that resulted in jailbreaks, thefts, and murders.
A life of crime
In 1876, McCarty traveled to Arizona and worked as a ranchhand in the area. It was there where he was nicknamed “Kid,” a common monicker for troubled youth. He got involved with gang leader John Mackie. The two were arrested for stealing soldiers’ horses, but Billy was able to escape. He eventually fled to the New Mexico territory.
Billy the Kid used many aliases, including The Kid, Kid Antrim, and William H. Bonney. He gained notoriety after being involved in the rivalry between John Tunstall and Irish businessmen Lawrence Murphy and James Dolan, who fought for control over cattle and dry goods. In 1878, Tunstall was killed in a shootout, which sparked the Lincoln County War. Tunstall’s employees, including Billy, formed The Regulators to avenge Tunstall. At some point, Billy and the Regulators were involved in a shootout with their rivals where Sheriff William Brady was killed. By that time, Billy the Kid was infamous in the West and was known to be handy with a Colt revolver and a Winchester rifle. He was wanted, dead or alive, for the death of Sheriff Brady.
Billy the Kid’s death
In 1880, Sheriff Pat Garrett tracked down Billy and arrested him. He was found guilty of Brady’s murder and was sentenced to hang. In April 1881, he escaped from death row by slipping from his handcuffs and killing the guards with their own guns. He fled the scene on horseback.
It had been a few months after Billy the Kid’s escape when Sheriff Garrett was tipped off about his location. On the night of July 14, 1881, Sheriff Garrett visited Billy’s friend Pete Maxwell’s home with two deputies. He roused Maxwell from sleep and asked Billy’s whereabouts. At about the same time, Billy was returning home when he saw the silhouettes of the deputies. He got his pistol out and asked “Who is it?” Upon hearing Billy, Garrett drew his gun and shot the fugitive near the heart. Billy the Kid was just 21 years old at the time of his death.
It is often reported that Billy the Kid had killed 21 people before his death, but only nine could be confirmed. Out of those, he killed four singlehandedly. Billy also didn’t robbed trains or banks like other famous gunslingers, but made a living by stealing cattle and horses. Throughout the years, Billy the Kid has been the subject of several movies, TV shows, books, and even comic books.
