View source for Billy the Kid

{{Short description|American outlaw and gunfighter (1859–1881)}}
{{Other uses|Billy the Kid (disambiguation)}}
{{redirect|Henry McCarty|the American screenwriter and film director|Henry McCarty (writer)}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2016}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Billy the Kid
| image              = Billy the Kid tintype, Fort Sumner, 1879-80-Edit2.jpg
| caption            = Portrait attributed to [[Ben Wittick]], {{circa|1880}}
| birth_name         = Henry McCarty<ref name="Nolan2015">{{Cite book |first=Frederick |last=Nolan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LdazBgAAQBAJ&pg=PT29 |title=The West of Billy the Kid |year=2015 |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |isbn=978-0-8061-4887-8 |page=29 |access-date=July 1, 2019 |archive-date=September 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210902033606/https://books.google.com/books?id=LdazBgAAQBAJ&pg=PT29 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| birth_date         = September 17 or {{Birth date|1859|11|23}}
| alias              = {{hlist|William H. Bonney|Henry Antrim|Kid Antrim}}
| birth_place        = [[New York City]], U.S.
| death_date         = {{death date and age|1881|7|14|1859|9|17}}
| death_cause        = Gunshot wound
| death_place        = [[Fort Sumner]], New Mexico, U.S.
| restingplace       = Old Fort Sumner Cemetery
| resting_place_coordinates = {{Coord|34|24|13|N|104|11|37|W|region:US-NM_type:landmark|display=inline|name= Billy the Kid's Gravesite}}
| occupation         = {{hlist|[[Cattle raiding|Cattle rustler]]|[[cowboy]] and ranch hand|[[Gambling|gambler]]|[[horse theft|horse thief]]|[[outlaw]]}}
}}

'''Henry McCarty''' (September 17 or November 23, 1859{{snd}}July 14, 1881), [[Pseudonym|alias]] '''William H. Bonney''', better known as '''Billy the Kid''', was an American [[outlaw]] and [[gunfighter]] of the [[American frontier|Old West]] who was linked to nine murders, four for which he was solely responsible, and five in which he may have played a role alongside others. He is also noted for his involvement in [[New Mexico]]'s [[Lincoln County War]].

McCarty was orphaned at the age of 15. His first arrest was for stealing food at the age of 16 in 1875. Ten days later, he robbed a [[Chinese laundry]] and was arrested again but escaped shortly afterwards. He fled from [[New Mexico Territory]] into neighboring [[Arizona Territory]], making himself both an outlaw and a federal fugitive. In 1877 he began to call himself "William H. Bonney".{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=144}}

After killing a blacksmith during an altercation in August 1877, Bonney became a wanted man in Arizona and returned to New Mexico, where he joined a group of [[Cattle raiding|cattle rustlers]]. He became well known in the region when he joined the [[Lincoln County Regulators|Regulators]] and took part in the Lincoln County War of 1878. He and two other Regulators were later charged with killing three men, including Lincoln County Sheriff [[William J. Brady]] and one of his deputies.

Bonney's notoriety grew in December 1880 when the ''Las Vegas Gazette'', in [[Las Vegas, New Mexico]], and ''[[The Sun (New York City)|The Sun]]'', in New York City, carried stories about his crimes.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=145–146}} Sheriff [[Pat Garrett]] captured Bonney later that month. In April 1881, Bonney was tried for and convicted of Brady's murder, and was sentenced to hang in May of that year. He escaped from jail on April 28, killing two sheriff's deputies in the process, and evaded capture for more than two months. Garrett shot and killed Bonney, by then aged 21, in [[Fort Sumner, New Mexico|Fort Sumner]] on July 14, 1881. During his short career as an outlaw, Bonney was the subject of numerous U.S. newspaper articles, some as far away as New York.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=145–147}}

During the decades following his death, stories spread that Bonney had survived, and a number of men claimed to be him.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 30, 2017 |title=The Old Man Who Claimed to Be Billy the Kid |language=en |work=Atlas Obscura |url=http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/billy-the-kid-survived-hico-texas |url-status=live |access-date=July 19, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170708134218/http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/billy-the-kid-survived-hico-texas |archive-date=July 8, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> The [[legend of Billy the Kid]] endures in American culture, and he remains one of the most notorious figures from the era, whose life and likeness have been [[List of works about Billy the Kid|frequently dramatized]] in [[Western genre|the Western genre]]. He has been a feature of more than 50 movies and several television series.

{{TOC limit|3}}

==Early life==
Henry McCarty was born to parents of [[Irish Catholic]] ancestry,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-07-15 |title=Life and death of Billy the Kid |url=https://clarechampion.ie/life-and-death-of-billy-the-kid/ |access-date=2020-11-13 |website=The Clare Champion |language=en-GB |archive-date=February 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200226090313/https://clarechampion.ie/life-and-death-of-billy-the-kid/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Catherine ({{nee|Devine}}) and Patrick McCarty, in New York City.<ref name="Tombstone Epitaph">{{cite news |last1=Slatten |first1=Jeremiah |title=Sign on the Dotted Line: Some truth about the mother of Billy the Kid |access-date= |work=[[The Tombstone Epitaph]] |volume=CXXXXIII|issue= 11|issn=1940-221X |date=November 2023 |pages=1, 8–9|location=Tombstone, AZ}}</ref> While his birth year has been confirmed as 1859, the exact date of his birth has been disputed as either September 17 or November 23 of that year.{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|pp=1–6}}{{sfn|Rasch|Mullin|1953|pp=1–5}}{{sfn|Rasch|1954|pp=6–11}} There is uncertainty among historians about the exact place and date of McCarty's birth.{{sfn|Nolan|2009|pp=1–6}}{{sfn|Rasch|Mullin|1953|pp=1–5}}{{sfn|Rasch|1954|pp=6–11}} Census records indicate that his younger brother Joseph McCarty was born in 1863.{{sfn|Nolan|1998|pp=15, 29}}

Following the death of her husband, Catherine McCarty and her sons moved to [[Indianapolis, Indiana]], where she met William Henry Harrison Antrim. The McCarty family moved with Antrim to [[Wichita, Kansas]] in 1870.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=15}} After moving again a few years later, Catherine married Antrim on March 1, 1873, at the First Presbyterian Church in [[Santa Fe, New Mexico|Santa Fe, New Mexico Territory]], and the McCarty boys served as witnesses.{{sfn|Nolan|1998|pp=17–19}}{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|p=7}} Shortly afterward, the family moved from Santa Fe to [[Silver City, New Mexico]] and Joseph adopted Antrim's surname.{{sfn|Nolan|1998|pp=15, 29}} Shortly before McCarty's mother died of [[tuberculosis]] on September 16, 1874,{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|p=8}} William Antrim abandoned the McCarty boys, leaving them orphans.

===First crimes===
[[File:Rancher Henry C Hooker retouched cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Henry Hooker]], one-time employer of Billy the Kid, at his [[Sierra Bonita Ranch]] in southeast Arizona]]
McCarty was 14 years old when his mother died. Sarah Brown, the owner of a boarding house, gave him room and board in exchange for work. On September 16, 1875, McCarty was caught stealing food.<ref name="billyhistorynet">{{Cite web |title=Billy The Kid: Facts, information and articles about Billy The Kid, famous outlaw, and a prominent figure from the Wild West |url=http://www.historynet.com/billy-the-kid |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160103175548/http://www.historynet.com/billy-the-kid |archive-date=January 3, 2016 |access-date=January 4, 2016 |publisher=HistoryNet.com |df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>''Grant County Herald'' (Silver City, New Mexico), September 26, 1875.</ref> Ten days later, McCarty and George Schaefer robbed a Chinese laundry, stealing clothing and two pistols. McCarty was charged with theft and was jailed. He escaped two days later and became a fugitive,<ref name=billyhistorynet /> as reported in the ''Silver City Herald'' the next day, the first story published about him. McCarty located his stepfather and stayed with him until Antrim threw him out; McCarty stole clothing and guns from him. It was the last time the two saw each other.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=94–95}}

After leaving Antrim, McCarty traveled to southeastern Arizona Territory, where he worked as a ranch hand and gambled his wages in nearby gaming houses.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=103}} In 1876, he was hired as a ranch hand by well-known rancher [[Henry Hooker]].<ref name="nmdotorg">{{Cite web |title=Billy the Kid |url=http://newmexicohistory.org/people/billy-the-kid |last=Wroth |first=William H. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160126043335/http://newmexicohistory.org/people/billy-the-kid |archive-date=January 26, 2016 |access-date=January 6, 2016 |publisher=State of New Mexico |df=mdy-all}}</ref>{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=10–11}} During this time, McCarty became acquainted with John R. Mackie, a Scottish-born criminal and former [[United States Cavalry|U.S. Cavalry]] private who, following his discharge, remained near the U.S. Army post at [[Fort Grant, Arizona|Camp Grant]] in Arizona. The two men soon began stealing horses from local soldiers.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=107}}{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=11–12}} McCarty became known as "Kid Antrim" because of his youth, slight build, clean-shaven appearance, and personality.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=110–111}}{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=16}}

At some point in 1877 McCarty began to refer to himself by the name "William H. Bonney".{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=144}} On August 17, 1877, Bonney was at a saloon in the village of [[Bonita, Arizona|Bonita]] when he got into an argument with Francis P. "Windy" Cahill, a blacksmith who reportedly had bullied him and on more than one occasion called him a "[[pimp]]". Bonney in turn called Cahill a "[[Bitch (slang)#Son of a bitch|son of a bitch]]", whereupon Cahill threw him to the floor and the two struggled for Bonney's revolver. Bonney shot and mortally wounded Cahill. A witness said, "[Billy] had no choice; he had to use his equalizer." Cahill died the following day.<ref name="cahill">{{Cite journal |last1=Radbourne |first1=Allan |last2=Rasch |first2=Philip J. |date=August 1985 |title=The Story of 'Windy' Cahill |journal=Real West |issue=204 |pages=22–27}}</ref> Bonney fled but returned a few days later and was apprehended by Miles Wood, the local [[justice of the peace]]. He was detained and held in the Camp Grant guardhouse but escaped before law enforcement could arrive.<ref name="nmdotorg"/>

Bonney stole a horse and fled Arizona Territory for New Mexico Territory,{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=119}} but [[Apache]]s took the horse from him, leaving him to walk many miles to the nearest settlement. At [[Fort Stanton (New Mexico)|Fort Stanton]],{{sfn|Nolan|1998|p=77}} starving and near death, he went to the home of friend and [[Seven Rivers Warriors]] gang member John Jones, whose mother Barbara nursed him back to health.<ref name="TWJones">{{Cite magazine |last=Hays |first=Chad |date=March 19, 2013 |title=Ma'am Jones A stitch in time |url=http://www.truewestmagazine.com/maam-jones/ |url-status=live |magazine=True West Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222225253/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/maam-jones/ |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |access-date=February 10, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=144}} After regaining his health, Bonney went to Apache Tejo, a former army post, where he joined a band of rustlers who raided herds owned by cattle magnate [[John Chisum]] in [[Lincoln County, New Mexico|Lincoln County]]. After he was spotted in Silver City, his involvement with the gang was mentioned in a local newspaper.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=123–131}}

==Lincoln County War==
{{Main|Lincoln County War}}

===Prelude===
[[File:John Tunstall seated pose cropped and retouched.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|[[John Henry Tunstall]], 1872|left]]
After returning to New Mexico, Bonney worked as a cowboy for English businessman and rancher [[John Henry Tunstall]] (1853–1878), near the Rio Felix, a tributary of the [[Pecos River]], in Lincoln County (now in [[Chaves County]]). Tunstall and his business partner and lawyer [[Alexander McSween]] were opponents of an alliance formed by [[Irish-American]] businessmen [[Lawrence Murphy]], [[James Dolan (Lincoln County War)|James Dolan]], and John Riley. The three men had wielded an economic and political hold over Lincoln County since the early 1870s, due in part to their ownership of a beef contract with nearby [[Fort Stanton (New Mexico)|Fort Stanton]] and a well-patronized dry goods store in the town of [[Lincoln, New Mexico|Lincoln]].

By February 1878 McSween owed $8,000 to Dolan, who obtained a court order and asked Lincoln County Sheriff [[William J. Brady]] to [[Attachment (law)|attach]] nearly $40,000 worth of Tunstall's property and livestock. Tunstall put Bonney in charge of nine prime horses and told him to relocate them to his ranch for safekeeping. Meanwhile, Sheriff Brady assembled a large posse to seize Tunstall's cattle.{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|pp=188–190}}<ref name=tunstallfamily />

On February 18, 1878, Tunstall learned of the posse's presence on his land and rode out to intervene. During the encounter, one member of the posse shot Tunstall in the chest, knocking him off his horse. Another posse member took Tunstall's gun and killed him with a shot to the back of his head.<ref name="tunstallfamily">{{Cite magazine |last=Boardman |first=Mark |date=September 25, 2010 |title=The Tunstalls Return – John Tunstall's kin traveled from England to fathom death in Lincoln. |url=http://www.truewestmagazine.com/the-tunstalls-return/ |url-status=live |magazine=True West Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216031421/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/the-tunstalls-return/ |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |access-date=February 10, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=46}} Tunstall's murder ignited the conflict between the two factions that became known as the [[Lincoln County War]].<ref name=tunstallfamily />{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|pp=23–55}}

===Build-up===
[[File:Dick Brewer cropped b&w.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|[[Richard M. Brewer|Dick Brewer]], {{circa|1875}}]]
After Tunstall was killed, Bonney and [[Richard M. Brewer|Dick Brewer]] swore affidavits against Brady and those in his posse, and obtained murder warrants from Lincoln County justice of the peace John B. Wilson.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=48–49}} On February 20, 1878, while attempting to arrest Brady, the sheriff and his deputies found and arrested Bonney and two other men riding with him.<ref name="TWfebarrest">{{Cite magazine |last=Bell |first=Bob Boze |date=April 1, 2004 |title=I Shot the Sheriff (and I Killed a Deputy, Too) – Billy Kid and the Regulators vs Sheriff Brady and His Deputies |url=http://www.truewestmagazine.com/i-shot-the-sheriff-and-i-killed-a-deputy-too/ |url-status=live |magazine=True West Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216031605/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/i-shot-the-sheriff-and-i-killed-a-deputy-too/ |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |access-date=February 10, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Deputy [[United States Marshal Service|U.S. Marshal]] [[Robert Widenmann]], a friend of Bonney, and a detachment of soldiers captured Sheriff Brady's jail guards, put them behind bars, and released Bonney and Brewer.<ref name="TWtunstallambush">{{Cite magazine |last=Bell |first=Bob Boze |date=September 11, 2015 |title=Tunstall Ambushed – Regulators vs Dolan's Henchmen |url=http://www.truewestmagazine.com/tunstall-ambushed/ |url-status=live |magazine=True West Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216032547/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/tunstall-ambushed/ |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |access-date=February 11, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Bonney then joined the [[Lincoln County Regulators]]; on March 9 they captured Frank Baker and William Morton, both of whom were accused of killing Tunstall. Baker and Morton were killed while allegedly trying to escape.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=56–60}}

On April 1, the Regulators ambushed Sheriff Brady and his deputies; Bonney was wounded in the thigh during the battle. Brady and Deputy Sheriff [[George W. Hindman]] were killed.{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|pp=233–49, 549}} On the morning of April 4, 1878, [[Buckshot Roberts]] and Dick Brewer were killed during [[Gunfight at Blazer's Mill|a shootout at Blazer's Mill]].<ref>Rickards, Colin. ''The Gunfight at Blazer's Mill'', 1974 – pp. 36–37.</ref> Warrants were issued for several participants on both sides, and Bonney and two others were charged with killing Brady, Hindman and Roberts.<ref name="nmdotorg"/>

==== Battle of Lincoln (1878) ====
{{Main|Battle of Lincoln (1878)}}
On the night of Sunday July 14, McSween and the Regulators—now a group of fifty or sixty men—went to Lincoln and stationed themselves in the town among several buildings.{{sfn|Jacobsen|1994|p=173}} At the McSween residence were Bonney, Florencio Chavez, [[Jose Chavez y Chavez]], Jim French, Harvey Morris, [[Tom O'Folliard]], and [[Yginio Salazar]], among others. Another group led by Marin Chavez and [[Doc Scurlock]] positioned themselves on the roof of a saloon. [[Henry Newton Brown]], Dick Smith, and [[George Coe (Lincoln County War)|George Coe]] defended a nearby adobe bunkhouse.{{sfn|Nolan|1992|pp=312–313}}{{sfn|Utley|1987|p=87}}

On Tuesday July 16, newly appointed sheriff [[George Peppin]] sent sharpshooters to kill the McSween defenders at the saloon. Peppin's men retreated when one of the snipers, Charles Crawford, was killed by Fernando Herrera. Peppin then sent a request for assistance to Colonel [[Nathan Dudley]], commandant of nearby [[Fort Stanton (New Mexico)|Fort Stanton]]. In a reply to Peppin, Dudley refused to intervene but later arrived in Lincoln with troops, turning the battle in favor of the Murphy-Dolan faction.{{sfn|Nolan|1992|p=513}}<ref name="nmdotorg"/>

A gunfight broke out on Friday July 19. McSween's supporters gathered inside his house. When Buck Powell and Deputy Sheriff Jack Long set fire to the building, the occupants began shooting. Bonney and the other men fled the building when all rooms but one were burning. During the confusion, McSween was shot and killed by Robert W. Beckwith, who was then shot and killed by Bonney.{{sfn|Nolan|1992|pp=322–331}}{{sfn|Utley|1987|pp=96–111}}

==Outlaw==
[[File:Gov Lew Wallace in 1893 cropped lightened.jpg|upright|thumb|left|New Mexico Territorial Governor [[Lew Wallace]] in 1893]]
Bonney and three other survivors of the [[Battle of Lincoln (1878)|Battle of Lincoln]] were near the Mescalero Indian Agency when the agency bookkeeper, Morris Bernstein, was murdered on August 5, 1878. All four were indicted for the murder, despite conflicting evidence that Bernstein had been killed by Constable Atanacio Martinez. All of the indictments except Bonney's were later quashed.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=104–105, 107, 110}}{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|pp=339–340, 342, 445, 514}}

On October 5, 1878, [[United States Marshal Service|U.S. Marshal]] John Sherman informed newly appointed Territorial Governor and former Union Army general [[Lew Wallace]] that he held warrants for several men, including "William H. Antrim, alias Kid, alias Bonny{{sic}}" but was unable to execute them "owing to the disturbed condition of affairs in that county, resulting from the acts of a desperate class of men".{{sfn|Utley|1987|p=120}} Wallace issued an amnesty proclamation on November 13, 1878, which pardoned anyone involved in the Lincoln County War since Tunstall's murder. It specifically excluded persons who had been convicted of or indicted for a crime, and therefore excluded Bonney.{{sfn|Nolan|2009a|pp=315, 515}}{{sfn|Utley|1987|pp=122–123, 126–128, 141, 150, 154, 156–158}}

On February 18, 1879, Bonney and friend [[Tom O'Folliard]] were in Lincoln and watched as attorney Huston Chapman was shot and his corpse set on fire. According to eyewitnesses, the pair were innocent bystanders forced at gunpoint by [[Jesse Evans]] to witness the murder.{{sfn|Utley|1987|pp=132–136, 139, 141, 143–144}}{{sfn|Nolan|1992|pp=375–376, 378, 516–517}} Bonney wrote to Governor Wallace on March 13, 1879, with an offer to provide information on the Chapman murder in exchange for amnesty. On March 15, Governor Wallace replied, agreeing to a secret meeting to discuss the situation. He met with Wallace in Lincoln on March 17, 1879. During the meeting and in subsequent correspondence, Wallace promised Bonney protection from his enemies and clemency if he would offer his testimony to a [[grand jury]].{{efn|For years Wallace denied that he had agreed to the bargain with Bonney; however, in a newspaper article published in 1902, Wallace changed his story and said he had promised him a pardon in exchange for the testimony.{{sfn|Cooper|2017|pages=556–561}} }}

On March 20, Wallace wrote to Bonney, "to remove all suspicion of understanding, I think it better to put the arresting party in charge of Sheriff Kimbrell [sic] who shall be instructed to see that no violence is used."{{efn|Letter from Governor Wallace to W.H. Bonney, March 20, 1879.{{sfn| Cooper |2017|pages=563–565}} }} Bonney responded on the same day, agreeing to testify and confirming Wallace's proposal for his arrest and detention in a local jail to assure his safety.{{sfn|Cooper|2017|p=565}}{{sfn|Boomhower|2005|p=103}} On March 21, he let himself be captured by a posse led by Sheriff George Kimball of Lincoln County. As agreed, Bonney provided a statement about Chapman's murder and testified in court.{{sfn|Boomhower|2005|p=104}} But after his testimony, the local district attorney refused to set him free.{{sfn|Boomhower|2005|pp=106–107}}{{sfn|Lifson|2009}} Still in custody several weeks later, Bonney began to suspect Wallace had used subterfuge and would never grant him amnesty. He escaped from the Lincoln County jail on June 17, 1879.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=111–125}}[[File:Tom O'Folliard circa 1875 retouched and cropped.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Tom O'Folliard]], {{circa|1875}}]]

Bonney avoided further violence until January 10, 1880, when he shot and killed Joe Grant, a newcomer to the area, at Hargrove's Saloon in [[Fort Sumner]].<ref name="truewestmag">{{Cite magazine |last=Bell |first=Bob Boze |date=May 2, 2007 |title=The Tale of the Empty Chamber Billy the Kid vs Joe Grant |url=http://www.truewestmagazine.com/billy-the-kid-vs-joe-grant/ |url-status=live |magazine=True West Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216031739/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/billy-the-kid-vs-joe-grant/ |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |access-date=January 10, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> The ''Santa Fe Weekly New Mexican'' reported, "Billy Bonney, more extensively known as 'the Kid', shot and killed Joe Grant. The origin of the difficulty was not learned."<ref>''Santa Fe Weekly New Mexican'', January 17, 1880.</ref> According to other contemporary sources, Bonney had been warned Grant intended to kill him. He walked up to Grant, told him he admired his revolver, and asked to examine it. Grant handed it over. Before returning the pistol, which he noticed contained only three cartridges, Bonney positioned the cylinder so the next hammer fall would land on an empty chamber. Grant suddenly pointed his pistol at Bonney's face and pulled the trigger. When it failed to fire, Bonney drew his own weapon and shot Grant in the head. A reporter for the ''Las Vegas Optic'' quoted Bonney as saying the encounter "was a game of two and I got there first".{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=131–133, 145, 203, 249–250}}{{sfn|Nolan|1992|pp=397, 518, 572}}

In 1880, Bonney formed a friendship with a rancher named Jim Greathouse, who later introduced him to [[Dave Rudabaugh]]. On November 29, 1880, Bonney, Rudabaugh, and [[Billy Wilson (outlaw)|Billy Wilson]] ran from a posse led by sheriff's deputy James Carlysle. Cornered at Greathouse's ranch, he told the posse they were holding Greathouse as a hostage. Carlysle offered to exchange places with Greathouse, and Bonney accepted the offer. Carlysle later attempted to escape by jumping through a window but he was shot three times and killed.<ref name="ODMP2007">{{Cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Deputy Sheriff James Carlysle |url=https://www.odmp.org/officer/2797-deputy-sheriff-james-carlysle |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925131942/http://www.odmp.org/officer/2797-deputy-sheriff-james-carlysle |archive-date=25 September 2020 |access-date=19 November 2020 |website=The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP)}}</ref> The shootout ended in a standoff; the posse withdrew and Bonney, Rudabaugh, and Wilson rode away.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=143–146, 179, 204}}{{sfn|Nolan|1992|pp=398–401}}

A few weeks after the Greathouse incident, Bonney, Rudabaugh, Wilson, O'Folliard, [[Charlie Bowdre]], and [[Tom Pickett (outlaw)|Tom Pickett]] rode into Fort Sumner. Unbeknownst to Bonney and his companions, a posse led by [[Pat Garrett]] was waiting for them. The posse opened fire, killing O'Folliard; the rest of the outlaws escaped unharmed.{{sfn|Metz|1974|pp=74–75}}{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=155–157, 256–257}}

===Capture and escape===
[[File:Pat Garrett2.jpg|thumb|upright|Sheriff Pat Garrett, {{circa|1903}}|left]]
On December 13, 1880, Governor Wallace posted a $500 bounty for Bonney's capture.{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=147}} Pat Garrett continued his search for Bonney; on December 23, following the siege in which Bowdre was killed, Garrett and his posse captured Bonney along with Pickett, Rudabaugh, and Wilson at [[Stinking Springs]]. The prisoners, including Bonney, were shackled and taken to Fort Sumner, then later to [[Las Vegas, New Mexico]]. When they arrived on December 26, they were met by crowds of curious onlookers.

The following day, an armed mob gathered at the train depot before the prisoners, who were already on board the train with Garrett, departed for Santa Fe.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=240}} Deputy Sheriff Romero, backed by the angry group of men, demanded custody of Dave Rudabaugh, who during an unsuccessful escape attempt on April 5, 1880 shot and killed deputy Antonio Lino Valdez in the process.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Deputy Sheriff Antonio Lino Valdez profile |url=http://www.odmp.org/officer/13549-deputy-sheriff-antonio-lino-valdez |access-date=30 December 2019 |website=[[The Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc]] |archive-date=November 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127004003/http://www.odmp.org/officer/13549-deputy-sheriff-antonio-lino-valdez |url-status=live }}</ref> Garrett refused to surrender the prisoner, and a tense confrontation ensued until he agreed to let the sheriff and two other men accompany the party to Santa Fe, where they would petition the governor to release Rudabaugh to them.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=126–127}} In a later interview with a reporter, Bonney said he was unafraid during the incident, saying, "if I only had my Winchester I'd lick the whole crowd."{{sfn|Metz|1974|pp=76–85}}{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=157–166}} The ''Las Vegas Gazette'' ran a story from a jailhouse interview following Bonney's capture; when the reporter said Bonney appeared relaxed, he replied, "What's the use of looking on the gloomy side of everything? The laugh's on me this time."<ref name="historynetbookreview">{{Cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=November 29, 2012 |title=Book Review: Billy the Kid's Writings, Words & Wit, by Gale Cooper |url=http://www.historynet.com/book-review-billy-the-kids-writings-words-wit-by-gale-cooper.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919050505/http://www.historynet.com/book-review-billy-the-kids-writings-words-wit-by-gale-cooper.htm |archive-date=September 19, 2015 |access-date=February 10, 2016 |website=HistoryNet |df=mdy-all}}</ref> 

After arriving in Santa Fe, Bonney, seeking clemency, sent Governor Wallace four letters over the next three months. Wallace refused to intervene,{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=240–241}} and he went to trial in April 1881 in [[Mesilla, New Mexico]].{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=242}} Following two days of testimony, Bonney was found guilty of Sheriff Brady's murder; it was the only conviction secured against any of the combatants in the Lincoln County War. On April 13, Judge Warren Bristol sentenced him to hang, with his execution scheduled for May 13, 1881.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=242}} Poet and journalist Arthur Chapman wrote in an essay that upon sentencing, the judge told Bonney he was going to hang until he was "dead, dead, dead", and his response was, "you can go to hell, hell, hell." Although this fabricated story eventually entered legend,<ref name="Etulain2020">{{cite book |last1=Etulain |first1=Richard W. |title=Billy the Kid: A Reader's Guide |date=2020 |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |isbn=978-0-8061-6807-4 |page=177 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0MjZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT177}}</ref> according to the historical record, he did not speak after the reading of his sentence.<ref name="TWMagBtKlegends">{{Cite web |last=Nolan |first=Frederick |date=April 28, 2015 |title='What if everything we know about Billy the Kid is wrong?' – Special Report |url=http://www.truewestmagazine.com/what-if-everything-we-know-about-billy-the-kid-is-wrong/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216044410/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/what-if-everything-we-know-about-billy-the-kid-is-wrong/ |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |access-date=February 12, 2016 |website=True West Magazine |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

[[File:LincolnNM Jail and Courthouse.jpg|thumb|Courthouse and jail, [[Lincoln, New Mexico]]]]
Following his sentencing, Bonney was moved to Lincoln, where he was held under guard on the top floor of the town courthouse. On the evening of April 28, 1881, while Garrett was in [[White Oaks, New Mexico|White Oaks]] collecting taxes, Deputy [[Bob Olinger]] took five other prisoners across the street for a meal, leaving [[James Bell (sheriff)|James Bell]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.odmp.org/officer/1713-deputy-sheriff-james-w-bell|title=Deputy Sheriff James W. Bell|website=The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP)|access-date=August 14, 2020|archive-date=October 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023222958/https://www.odmp.org/officer/1713-deputy-sheriff-james-w-bell|url-status=live}}</ref> another deputy, alone with Bonney at the jail. He asked to be taken outside to use the [[outhouse]] behind the courthouse; on their return to the jail, Bonney—who was walking ahead of Bell up the stairs to his cell—hid around a blind corner, slipped out of his handcuffs, and beat Bell with the loose end of the cuffs. During the ensuing scuffle, Bonney grabbed Bell's revolver and fatally shot him in the back as Bell tried to get away.{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=181}}

Bonney, with his legs still shackled, broke into Garrett's office and took a loaded shotgun left behind by Olinger. He waited at the upstairs window for Olinger to respond to the gunshot that killed Bell and called out to him, "Look up, old boy, and see what you get." When Olinger looked up, Bonney shot and killed him.{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=181}}{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=243–244}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Deputy U.S. Marshal Robert Olinger |url=https://www.odmp.org/officer/10157-deputy-us-marshal-robert-olinger |website=The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP) |access-date=August 14, 2020 |archive-date=August 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804003517/https://www.odmp.org/officer/10157-deputy-us-marshal-robert-olinger |url-status=live }}</ref> After about an hour, Bonney freed himself from the leg irons with an axe.{{sfn|Jacobsen|1994|p=232}} He obtained a horse and rode out of town; according to some stories he was singing as he left Lincoln.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=243–244}}

===Recapture and death===
While Bonney was on the run, Governor Wallace placed a new $500 bounty on the fugitive's head.{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=188}}<ref name="TWbounty">{{cite web |url = http://www.truewestmagazine.com/the-holy-grail-for-sale/ |title = The Holy Grail for Sale – The Billy the Kid tintype is on the auction block, and it might just clear half a million |work = True West Magazine |date = May 24, 2011 |access-date = February 10, 2016 |last = Boardman |first = Mark |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305011909/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/the-holy-grail-for-sale/ |archive-date = March 5, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.abqjournal.com/311743/is-this-the-kid.html |title = Is this Billy the Kid? |work = Albuquerque Journal – Las Cruces Bureau |date = December 1, 2013 |access-date = February 6, 2016 |first = Lauren |last = Villagran |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161215113858/https://www.abqjournal.com/311743/is-this-the-kid.html |archive-date = December 15, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Almost three months after his escape, Garrett, responding to rumors that Bonney was in the vicinity of Fort Sumner, left Lincoln with two deputies on July 14, 1881, to question resident Pete Maxwell, a friend of Bonney's.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|pp=245–246}} Maxwell, son of land baron [[Lucien Maxwell]], spoke with Garrett the same day for several hours. Around midnight, the pair were sitting in Maxwell's darkened bedroom when Bonney unexpectedly entered.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=247}}

Accounts vary as to the course of events. According to the canonical version, as he entered the room, Bonney failed to recognize Garrett due to the poor lighting. Drawing his revolver and backing away, Bonney asked ''"¿Quién es? ¿Quién es?"'' (Spanish for "Who is it? Who is it?").<ref name="Nolan201486">{{cite book|author=Frederick Nolan|title=The Billy the Kid Reader|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MwjjBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA86|year=2014|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press|isbn=978-0806182544|page=86|access-date=July 4, 2021|archive-date=July 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709200650/https://books.google.com/books?id=MwjjBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA86|url-status=live}}</ref> Recognizing Bonney's voice, Garrett drew his revolver and fired twice.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/05/us/122-years-later-lawmen-are-still-chasing-billy-the-kid.html |title=122 Years Later, Lawmen Are Still Chasing Billy the Kid |first=Michael |last=Janofsky |date=June 5, 2003 |access-date=January 25, 2019 |page=24 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |archive-date=January 25, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190125130848/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/05/us/122-years-later-lawmen-are-still-chasing-billy-the-kid.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The first bullet struck Bonney in the chest just above his heart, while the second missed. Garrett's account leaves it unclear whether Bonney was killed instantly or took some time to die.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=247}}<ref>{{cite web|title=The Death Of Billy The Kid, 1881|url=http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/billythekid.htm|publisher=Eyewitness to History/Ibis Communications|access-date=February 18, 2020|archive-date=February 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219215459/http://eyewitnesstohistory.com/billythekid.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

A few hours after the shooting, a local justice of the peace assembled a [[coroner's jury]] of six people. The jury members interviewed Maxwell and Garrett, and Bonney's body and the location of the shooting were examined. The jury certified the body as Bonney's and, according to a local newspaper, the jury foreman said, "It was the Kid's body that we examined."<ref name="deathcert">{{cite web |url = http://www.history.com/news/historian-seeks-death-certificate-to-end-billy-the-kid-rumors |title = Historian Seeks Death Certificate to End Billy the Kid Rumors |work = History.com |date = February 27, 2015 |access-date = February 10, 2016 |first = Christopher |last = Klein |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304060901/http://www.history.com/news/historian-seeks-death-certificate-to-end-billy-the-kid-rumors |archive-date = March 4, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Bonney was given a wake by candlelight; he was buried the next day and his grave was denoted with a wooden marker.<ref name="SantaFeExaminer">{{citation |title = Ft. Sumner New Mexico: Where Billy The Kid met his demise |work = Santa Fe Examiner |date = December 31, 2012 |first = Elizabeth R. |last = Rose }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.truewestmagazine.com/a-shot-in-the-dark/ |title = A Shot in the Dark: Billy the Kid vs Pat Garrett |work = True West Magazine |date = August 12, 2014 |access-date = February 10, 2016 |first1 = Bob Boze |last1 = Bell |first2 = Mark Lee |last2 = Gardner |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160216031417/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/a-shot-in-the-dark/ |archive-date = February 16, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

Five days after Bonney's killing, Garrett traveled to [[Santa Fe, New Mexico]], to collect the $500 reward offered by Governor Lew Wallace for his capture, dead or alive. [[William G. Ritch]], the acting New Mexico governor, refused to pay the reward.<ref name="DNM">{{Citation|title=Santa Fe Daily New Mexican Newspaper|date=July 21, 1881|newspaper=Santa Fe Daily New Mexican|page=4}}</ref> Over the next few weeks, the residents of Las Vegas, Mesilla, Santa Fe, White Oaks, and other New Mexico cities raised over $7,000 in reward money for Garrett. A year and four days after Bonney's death, the New Mexico territorial legislature passed a special act to grant Garrett the $500 bounty reward promised by Governor Wallace.<ref name=ACT>{{Cite court |court=New Mexico Territorial Legislature |date=July 18, 1882}}</ref>

Because people had begun to claim Garrett unfairly ambushed Bonney, Garrett felt the need to tell his side of the story and called upon his friend, journalist [[Marshall Ashmun Upson|Marshall Upson]], to [[ghostwrite]] a book for him.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=198–199}} The book, ''[[The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid]]'',{{efn|The full title of the Garrett-Upson book was ''The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid, the Noted Desperado of the Southwest, Whose Deeds of Daring and Blood Made His Name a Terror in New Mexico, Arizona and Northern Mexico. By Pat. F. Garrett, Sheriff of Lincoln Co., N.M., By Whom He Was Finally Hunted Down and Captured by Killing Him.''{{sfn|Utley|1989|p=199}}}} was first published in April 1882.<ref>{{cite book |last = LeMay |first = John and Stahl, Robert J. |date = 2020
|title = The Man Who Invented Billy the Kid: The Authentic Life of Ash Upson
|location =  Roswell, NM |publisher = Bicep Books |pages = 127–133 |isbn = 978-1953221919}}</ref> Although only a few copies sold following its release, in time, it became a reference for later historians who wrote about Bonney's life.{{sfn|Utley|1989|pp=198–199}}

==Rumors of survival==
Over time, legends grew claiming that Bonney was not killed, and that Garrett staged the incident and death out of friendship, so that Bonney could evade the law.{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=xiv}} During the next 50 years, a number of men claimed they were Billy the Kid.{{citation needed|date=March 2019}} Most of these claims were easily disproven, but two have remained topics of discussion and debate.

In 1948, a central Texas man, Ollie P. Roberts, also known as [[Brushy Bill Roberts]], began claiming he was Billy the Kid and went before New Mexico Governor [[Thomas J. Mabry]] seeking a pardon. Mabry dismissed Roberts' claims, and Roberts died shortly afterward.<ref>{{cite journal |title = Field & Stream |journal = Field & Stream 2007–08 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Ewn0bxhvvbYC&pg=PA106 |date = July 1981 |pages = 106– |issn = 8755-8599 |access-date = July 20, 2017 |archive-date = November 1, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171101132237/https://books.google.com/books?id=Ewn0bxhvvbYC&pg=PA106 |url-status = live }}</ref> Nevertheless, [[Hico, Texas]], Roberts' town of residence, capitalized on his claim by opening a Billy the Kid museum.<ref>Texas Department of Transportation, ''Texas State Travel Guide, 2008'', pp. 200–201</ref>

John Miller, an Arizona man, also claimed he was Bonney. This was unsupported by his family until 1938, some time after his death. Miller's body was buried in the state-owned Arizona Pioneers' Home Cemetery in [[Prescott, Arizona]]; in May 2005, Miller's teeth and bones<ref name="post">{{cite news |url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/07/21/one-mans-quest-to-bury-the-wild-west-mystery-of-billy-the-kids-death/ |title = One man's quest to bury the Wild West mystery of Billy the Kid's death |last = Miller |first = Michael E. |date = July 21, 2015 |newspaper = [[The Washington Post]] |access-date = December 25, 2015 |quote = "A family Bible put his age in 1881 at just 2 years old: far too young for even a criminal nicknamed 'the Kid'." |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151223231630/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/07/21/one-mans-quest-to-bury-the-wild-west-mystery-of-billy-the-kids-death/ |archive-date = December 23, 2015 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> were exhumed and examined,<ref name="lbanks">{{cite web |url = https://www.tucsonweekly.com/tucson/a-new-billy-the-kid/Content?oid=1083797 |first = Leo W. |last = Banks |title = A New Billy the Kid? |work = Tucson Weekly |access-date = August 4, 2008 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090616130840/http://www.tucsonweekly.com/tucson/a-new-billy-the-kid/Content?oid=1083797 |archive-date = June 16, 2009 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> without permission from the state.<ref>Associated Press (October 24, 2006) [http://www.deseretnews.com/article/650201170/2-wont-face-charges-in-Billy-the-Kid-quest.html 2 won't face charges in Billy the Kid quest] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201035347/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/650201170/2-wont-face-charges-in-Billy-the-Kid-quest.html |date=February 1, 2016 }}, ''Deseret News''. Retrieved August 29, 2008.</ref> DNA samples from the remains were sent to a laboratory in [[Dallas]] and tested to compare Miller's DNA with blood samples obtained from floorboards in the [[Lincoln Historic Site|old Lincoln County courthouse]] and a bench where Bonney's body allegedly was placed after he was shot.<ref name="burns" /> According to a July 2015 article in ''The Washington Post'', the lab results were "useless".<ref name="post" />

In 2004 researchers sought to exhume the remains of Catherine Antrim, Bonney's mother, whose DNA would be tested and compared with that of the body buried in William Bonney's grave.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0318/p11s02-ussc.html |title = Shootout over Billy the Kid |last = Miller |first = Patrick |date = March 18, 2004 |work = [[The Christian Science Monitor]] |access-date = December 13, 2015 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151222091453/http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0318/p11s02-ussc.html |archive-date = December 22, 2015 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> {{as of|2012}}, her body had not been exhumed.<ref name="burns">{{cite web |url = http://www.albuquerquebusinesslaw.com/business-law/billy-the-kid-and-new-mexico-open-records-law/ |title = Billy the Kid and New Mexico Open Records Law |last1 = Burns |first1 = James T. |date = April 28, 2012 |website = Albuquerque Business Law |access-date = December 25, 2015 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151226160552/http://www.albuquerquebusinesslaw.com/business-law/billy-the-kid-and-new-mexico-open-records-law/ |archive-date = December 26, 2015 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

In 2007<ref name="abqj" /> author and amateur historian Gale Cooper filed a lawsuit against the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office under the state Inspection of Public Records Act to produce records of the results of the 2006 DNA tests and other forensic evidence collected in the Billy the Kid investigations.<ref>Associated Press (August 28, 2008) [https://www.foxnews.com/story/lawsuit-seeks-dna-evidence-for-1881-death-of-billy-the-kid/ Lawsuit seeks DNA evidence for 1881 death of Billy the Kid], Fox News Channel. Retrieved August 29, 2008.</ref> In April 2012, 133 pages of documents were provided; they offered no conclusive evidence confirming or disproving the generally accepted story of Garrett's killing of Bonney,<ref name="abqj" /> but confirmed the records' existence, and that they could have been produced earlier.<ref name="burns" /> In 2014, Cooper was awarded $100,000 in punitive damages but the decision was later overturned by the New Mexico Court of Appeals.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.pressreader.com/usa/las-vegas-review-journal-sunday/20160626/281874412709878 |title = Billy the Kid quest evolves into records fight |via = PressReader |access-date = August 18, 2017 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170819020746/https://www.pressreader.com/usa/las-vegas-review-journal-sunday/20160626/281874412709878 |archive-date = August 19, 2017 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> The lawsuit ultimately cost Lincoln County nearly $300,000.<ref name="abqj">{{cite web |url = https://www.abqjournal.com/403158/award-ends-lawsuit-over-records-on-billy-the-kid.html |title = Award ends suit over Billy the Kid records |last1 = Villagran |first1 = Lauren |date = May 20, 2014 |website = Albuquerque Journal |access-date = December 25, 2015 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170819061108/https://www.abqjournal.com/403158/award-ends-lawsuit-over-records-on-billy-the-kid.html |archive-date = August 19, 2017 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

In February 2015 historian Robert Stahl petitioned a district court in Fort Sumner asking the state of New Mexico to issue a death certificate for Bonney.<ref name="deathcert" /> In July 2015, Stahl filed suit in the New Mexico Supreme Court. The suit asked the court to order the state's Office of the Medical Investigator to officially certify Bonney's death under New Mexico state law.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.santafenewmexican.com/life/features/historian-asks-state-s-high-court-to-help-set-record/article_97c4476d-782b-535b-8584-1da98cad441d.html |title = Historian asks state's high court to help set record straight on Billy the Kid's death |last = Constable |first = Anne |date = July 17, 2015 |work = [[The Santa Fe New Mexican]] |access-date = December 14, 2015 |archive-date = November 8, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201108165155/https://www.santafenewmexican.com/life/features/historian-asks-state-s-high-court-to-help-set-record/article_97c4476d-782b-535b-8584-1da98cad441d.html |url-status = live }}</ref>

==Photographs==
As of 2025 only one authenticated photograph exists; others thought to depict him are disputed.<ref name="BBC-42089464">{{cite web |title = Flea market photo 'shows Billy the Kid' |url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-42089464 |website = BBC News |access-date = November 23, 2017 |date = November 22, 2017 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171122235312/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-42089464 |archive-date = November 22, 2017 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

===Dedrick ferrotype===
[[File:Billy the Kid tintype, Fort Sumner, 1879-80.jpg|thumb|Unretouched original [[ferrotype]] of Billy the Kid, {{circa|1880}}|227x227px]]
One of the few remaining artifacts of Bonney's life is a {{convert|2|x|3|in|cm|adj=on|abbr=off|sp=us}} [[tintype|ferrotype]] photograph of him, attributed to photographer [[Ben Wittick]]<ref name="BowersMuseum2022">{{cite web |author1=Staff |title=Four Views of Walpi |url=https://www.bowers.org/index.php/collection/collection-blog/four-views-of-walpi |website=Bowers Museum |access-date=21 March 2024 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20220703153447/https://bowers.org/index.php/collection/collection-blog/four-views-of-walpi |archive-date=3 July 2022}}</ref> in late 1879 or early 1880. The image shows Bonney wearing a vest under a sweater, a [[slouch hat]] and a bandana, while holding an [[1873 Winchester]] rifle with its butt resting on the floor. For years, this was the only photograph of Bonney accepted by scholars and historians.<ref name="TWbounty" /> The original ferrotype survived because Bonney's friend Dan Dedrick kept it after the outlaw's death. It was passed down through Dedrick's family, and was copied several times, appearing in numerous publications during the 20th century. In June 2011, the original plate was bought at auction for $2.3&nbsp;million by businessman [[Bill Koch (businessman)|William Koch]].<ref>{{cite news |last1 = Tripp |first1 = Leslie |title = Billy the Kid photograph fetches $2.3 million at auction |url = http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/06/26/colorado.billy.the.kid.photo/index.html |publisher = CNN |access-date = July 4, 2015 |date = June 26, 2011 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150706031600/http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/06/26/colorado.billy.the.kid.photo/index.html |archive-date = July 6, 2015 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref name="BBCphoto">{{cite news |url = https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-13919013 |title = Billy the Kid portrait fetches $2.3m at Denver auction |publisher = BBC News US & Canada |date = June 26, 2011 |access-date = January 26, 2016 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160229211130/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-13919013 |archive-date = February 29, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

The image shows Bonney wearing his holstered Colt revolver on his left side. This led to the belief that he was left-handed, without taking into account that the ferrotype process produces reversed images.<ref name="left hand">{{cite web |url = https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2011/jun/27/billy-the-kid-photograph-sold |title = Billy the Kid photograph sold at auction in Colorado for $2.3m |work = The Guardian |date = June 26, 2011 |access-date = December 28, 2015 |first = Jo |last = Adetunji |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305042431/http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2011/jun/27/billy-the-kid-photograph-sold |archive-date = March 5, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> In 1954, western historians James D. Horan and Paul Sann wrote that Bonney was right-handed and carried his pistol on his right hip.<ref>Horan, James D. and Sann, Paul. ''Pictorial History of the Wild West'', New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1954 – p. 57.</ref> The opinion was confirmed by Clyde Jeavons, a former curator of the [[BFI National Archive|National Film and Television Archive]].<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/mar/03/1 |last = Mayes |first = Ian |title = I kid you not |newspaper = [[The Guardian]] |date = March 3, 2001 |access-date = June 19, 2009 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140312000916/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/mar/03/1 |archive-date = March 12, 2014 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Several historians have written that Bonney was [[ambidexterity|ambidextrous]].<ref>Gardner, Mark Lee: ''To Hell on a Fast Horse: The Untold Story of Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett'' (2011), pp. 91, 277</ref>{{sfn|Nolan|1998|p=29}}{{sfn|Wallis|2007|p=83}}<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/jun/10/the-fact-and-fiction-32of-americas-outlaw/print/ |title = The fact and fiction of America's outlaw |last = Goode |first = Stephen |work = The Washington Times |date = June 10, 2007 |archive-url = https://archive.today/20200611180357/https://www.webcitation.org/5hfNVN6Db?url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/jun/10/the-fact-and-fiction-32of-americas-outlaw/print/ |archive-date = June 11, 2020 |access-date = December 25, 2015 |quote = Billy loved to sing and had a good voice, those who knew him claimed&nbsp;... He was ambidextrous and wrote well with both hands. |url-status = dead |df = mdy }}</ref>

===Croquet tintype===
[[File:Photo of Billy the Kid (left).JPG|thumb|Detail from photograph purporting to show Bonney (left) playing croquet in 1878|left]]
A {{convert|4|x|6|in|mm|adj=on}} ferrotype purchased in 2010 at a memorabilia shop in [[Fresno, California]], has been claimed to show Bonney and members of the Regulators playing croquet. If authentic, it is the only known photo of Billy the Kid and the Regulators together and the only image to feature their wives and female companions.<ref name="Constable">{{cite news |url = http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/billy-the-kid-a-fan-of-croquet/article_5a5d7d2c-09e1-58b3-9f2b-dcad9004b1c1.html |title = Billy the Kid: A fan of croquet? |last = Constable |first = Anne |date = August 24, 2015 |access-date = December 10, 2017 |newspaper = [[The New Mexican]] |archive-date = May 8, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200508201010/https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/billy-the-kid-a-fan-of-croquet/article_5a5d7d2c-09e1-58b3-9f2b-dcad9004b1c1.html |url-status = live }}</ref> Collector Robert{{nbsp}}G. McCubbin and outlaw historian John Boessenecker concluded in 2013 that the photograph does not show Bonney.<ref name="truewestmag2" /> [[Whitny Braun]], a professor and researcher, located an advertisement for croquet sets sold at Chapman's General Store in Las Vegas, New Mexico, dated to June 1878. Kent Gibson, a forensic video and still image expert, offered the services of his facial recognition software, and stated that Bonney is indeed one of the individuals in the image.<ref name="Constable"/>

In August 2015, [[Lincoln State Monument]] officials and the [[New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs]] said that despite the new research, they could not confirm that the image showed Bonney or others from the Lincoln County War era, according to Monument manager Gary Cozzens. A photograph curator at the [[Palace of the Governors]] archives, Daniel Kosharek, said the image is "problematic on a lot of fronts", including the small size of the figures and the lack of resemblance of the background landscape to Lincoln County or the state in general.<ref name="Constable" /> Editors from the ''[[True West Magazine]]'' staff said, "no one in our office thinks this photo is of the Kid [and the Regulators]."<ref name=truewestmag2>{{cite web |url = http://www.truewestmagazine.com/billy-the-kid-experts-weigh-in-on-the-croquet-photo/ |title = Billy the Kid Experts Weigh in on the Croquet Photo |date = October 14, 2015 |access-date = February 3, 2016 |work = [[True West Magazine]] |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160301175846/http://www.truewestmagazine.com/billy-the-kid-experts-weigh-in-on-the-croquet-photo |archive-date = March 1, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

In early October 2015, Kagin's, Inc., a [[numismatic]] authentication firm, said the image was authentic after a number of experts, including those associated with a recent [[National Geographic Channel]] program,<ref>{{cite news |last = Guijarro |first = Randy |title = Billy the Kid: New Evidence. Found Photograph |url = http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/galleries/billy-the-kid-new-evidence/at/billy-the-kid-new-evidence14-2100466/ |newspaper = [[National Geographic]] |date = October 18, 2015 |access-date = December 10, 2017 |archive-date = December 14, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171214023054/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/galleries/billy-the-kid-new-evidence/at/billy-the-kid-new-evidence14-2100466/ |url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.natgeotv.com/int/billy-the-kid-new-evidence |title = Billy the Kid: New Evidence |work = [[National Geographic]] |date = October 18, 2015 |access-date = December 10, 2017 |archive-date = December 11, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171211053555/http://www.natgeotv.com/int/billy-the-kid-new-evidence |url-status = dead }}</ref>
examined it.<ref name="NPRcroquet">{{cite web |url = https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/10/15/448993361/-2-photo-found-at-junk-store-has-billy-the-kid-in-it-could-be-worth-5-million |title = $2 Photo Found at Junk Store Has Billy The Kid in It, Could Be Worth $5M |publisher = [[NPR]] |date = October 15, 2015 |access-date = January 25, 2016 |first = Brakkton |last = Booker |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160126002311/http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/10/15/448993361/-2-photo-found-at-junk-store-has-billy-the-kid-in-it-could-be-worth-5-million |archive-date = January 26, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title = Man who discovered rare Billy the Kid photo: 'The hunt is a really grand thing' |url = https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/19/man-who-discovered-rare-billy-the-kid-photo-the-hunt-is-a-really-grand-thing |date = October 19, 2015 |last = Carroll |first = Rory |author-link = Rory Carroll |newspaper = [[The Guardian]] |access-date = October 27, 2015 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151028141516/http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/19/man-who-discovered-rare-billy-the-kid-photo-the-hunt-is-a-really-grand-thing |archive-date = October 28, 2015 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

==Posthumous pardon request==
In 2010, New Mexico Governor [[Bill Richardson]] turned down a request for a posthumous pardon of Bonney for the murder of Sheriff William Brady. The pardon was considered to fulfill Governor Lew Wallace's 1879 promise to Bonney. Richardson's decision, citing "historical ambiguity", was announced on December 31, 2010, his last day in office.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/12/31/new.mexico.billy/index.html |title = No pardon for Billy the Kid |publisher = CNN |access-date = December 31, 2010 |date = December 31, 2010 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121109024425/http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/12/31/new.mexico.billy/index.html |archive-date = November 9, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title = An Outlaw by Any Name: Billy the Kid |url = https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/cp/obituaries/archives/billy-the-kid |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date = July 14, 2016 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170129080342/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/cp/obituaries/archives/billy-the-kid |archive-date = January 29, 2017 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

==Grave markers==
[[File:Billy-The-Kid-Individual-Tombstone.jpg|thumb|Grave marker for Billy The Kid, also at Fort Sumner, New Mexico]]
[[File:Billy the Kid Headstone.jpg|thumb|William H. Bonney (aka Billy the Kid) along with Tom O'Folliard and Charlie Bowdre "Pals" Headstone. (Photo taken in September 2012)]]
In 1931, Charles{{nbsp}}W.{{nbsp}}Foor, an unofficial tour guide at Fort Sumner Cemetery, campaigned to raise funds for a permanent marker for the graves of Bonney, O'Folliard, and Bowdre. As a result of his efforts, a stone memorial marked with the names of the three men and their death dates beneath the word "Pals" was erected in the center of the burial area.{{sfn|Simmons|2006|pp=161–163}}

In 1940, stone cutter James N. Warner of [[Salida, Colorado]], made and donated to the cemetery a new marker for Bonney's grave.{{sfn|Simmons|2006|pp=164–165}} It was stolen on February 8, 1981, but recovered days later in [[Huntington Beach, California]]. New Mexico Governor [[Bruce King]] arranged for the county sheriff to fly to California to return it to Fort Sumner,<ref>{{cite web |title = Billy the Kid's Elusive Tombstone / Old Fort Sumner and Billy the Kid's Grave |publisher = Cemeteries-of-tx.com |url = http://www.cemeteries-of-tx.com/newmexico/DeBaca/Sumner.html |access-date = February 9, 2016 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160527081257/http://www.cemeteries-of-tx.com/newmexico/DeBaca/Sumner.html |archive-date = May 27, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> where it was reinstalled in May 1981. Although both markers are behind iron fencing, a group of vandals entered the enclosure at night in June 2012 and tipped the stone over.<ref>{{cite news |title = 'Billy the Kid' tombstone in New Mexico vandalized |last = Lohr |first = David |author-link = David Lohr |url = http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/29/billy-the-kid-tombstone-vandalized_n_1638484.html |access-date = March 21, 2013 |work = The Huffington Post |date = June 30, 2012 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120704000850/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/29/billy-the-kid-tombstone-vandalized_n_1638484.html |archive-date = July 4, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

==In literature and the arts==
{{Main|List of works about Billy the Kid}}
The life and likeness of Billy the Kid have been frequently represented in comics, literature, film, music, theater, radio, television, and video games. 

==See also==
* [[Folklore of the United States]]
* [[List of Old West gunfighters]]
* [[List of Old West lawmen]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book |last = Adams |first = Ramon F. |title = A Fitting Death for Billy the Kid |url = https://archive.org/details/fittingdeathforb00adam |url-access = registration |date = 1960 |publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |location = Norman |oclc = 8937525 }}
* {{cite book |last=Boomhower |first=Ray E. |title=The Sword and the Pen |location=Indianapolis |publisher=Indiana Historical Society Press |year=2005 |page=103|isbn=0-87195-185-1}}
* {{cite book |last = Burns |first = Walter |title = The Saga of Billy the Kid: The Thrilling Life of America's Original Outlaw |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=mzNgBgAAQBAJ |date = 2014 |publisher = Skyhorse Publishing |location = Garden City, New York |isbn = 978-1-63220-112-6 |oclc = 894170041 |access-date = May 12, 2016 }}
* {{cite book |last = Coe |first = George W. |title = Frontier Fighter: The Autobiography of George W. Coe Who Fought and Rode with Billy the Kid, as Related to Nan Hillary Harrison |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hCAzAQAAIAAJ |date = 1934 |publisher = Houghton Mifflin |location = Boston |oclc = 692143776 |access-date = August 29, 2016 |archive-date = June 13, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190613213318/https://books.google.com/books?id=hCAzAQAAIAAJ |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last=Cooper |first=Gale |title=The Lost Pardon of Billy the Kid: An Analysis Factoring in the Santa Fe Ring, Governor Lew Wallace's Dilemma, and a Territory in Rebellion |location=Albuquerque, New Mexico |publisher=Gelcour Books |year=2017 |isbn=978-0986070723}}
* {{cite magazine |last = DeMattos |first = Jack |date = November 1978 |title = The Search for Billy the Kid's Roots |magazine = Real West |issue = 160 |publisher = Real West }}
* {{cite magazine |last = DeMattos |first = Jack |date = January 1980 |title = The Search for Billy the Kid's Roots – Is Over! |magazine = Real West |issue = 167 |publisher = Real West }}
* {{cite magazine |last = DeMattos |first = Jack |date = August 1983 |title = Gunfighters of the Real West: Henry McCarty, Alias 'Billy the Kid' |magazine = Real West |issue = 192 |publisher = Real West }}
* {{cite book |last = Dworkin |first = Mark J. |date = 2015 |title = American Mythmaker: Walter Noble Burns and the Legends of Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and Joaquín Murrieta |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=YFbZBgAAQBAJ |location = Norman|publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |isbn = 978-0-8061-4902-8 |access-date = June 13, 2016 |archive-date = June 12, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190612085727/https://books.google.com/books?id=YFbZBgAAQBAJ |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Dykes |first = Jefferson |title = Billy the Kid: The Bibliography of a Legend |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=9NwSAAAAIAAJ |date = 1952 |publisher = The University of New Mexico Press |location = Albuquerque|access-date = August 29, 2016 |archive-date = June 9, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190609175456/https://books.google.com/books?id=9NwSAAAAIAAJ |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Earle |first = James H. |title = The Capture of Billy the Kid |year = 1988 |publisher = Creative Publishing Co. |location = College Station, Texas |isbn = 0-932702-44-9 |oclc = 18052460 |url = https://archive.org/details/captureofbillyki00earl }}
* {{cite book |last = Edwards |first = Harold L. |title = Goodbye Billy the Kid |year = 1995 |publisher = Creative Publishing Co. |location = College Station, Texas |isbn = 1-57208-000-0 |oclc = 33335740 }}
* {{cite book |last = Fable | first = Edmund Jr. |title = The True Life of Billy the Kid, The Noted New Mexican Outlaw |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hT3XAAAAMAAJ |date = 1980 |orig-year = 1881 |publisher = Creative Publishing Co. |location = College Station, Texas |isbn = 0-932702-11-2 |oclc = 6487191 }}
* {{cite book |last = Fulton |first = Maurice Garland |editor = Robert N. Nullin |author-link = Maurice Garland Fulton |title = History of the Lincoln County War |date = 1968 |publisher = University of Arizona Press |location = Tucson |oclc = 437868 }}
* {{cite book |last = Gardner |first = Mark Lee |title = To Hell on a Fast Horse: Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, and the Epic Chase to Justice in the Old West |date = 2010 |publisher = William Morrow |location = New York |isbn = 978-0-06-136827-1 |oclc = 419859633 |url = https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780061368271 }}
* {{cite book |last = Garrett |first = Pat F. |author-link = Pat Garrett |title = The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=vGVNAAAAYAAJ |edition = 1st |date = 1882 |publisher = New Mexican Printing and Publishing Co. |location = Santa Fe |oclc = 748293298 }}
* {{cite magazine |last = Hough |first = Emerson |date = September 1901 |title = Billy the Kid: The True Story of a Western 'Bad Man' |url = https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015023579140;view=1up;seq=316 |magazine = Everybody's Magazine |publisher = The Ridgeway Company |location = New York |access-date = August 28, 2016 |archive-date = September 2, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210902033610/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015023579140&view=1up&seq=316 |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Hunt |first = Frazier |author-link = Frazier Hunt |title = The Tragic Days of Billy the Kid |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=A1Lw1k5WRA0C |year = 2009 |orig-year = 1956 |publisher = Sunstone Press |isbn = 978-0-86534-717-5 |location = Santa Fe, New Mexico |oclc = 316327276 |access-date = November 21, 2017 |archive-date = December 23, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161223154622/https://books.google.com/books?id=A1Lw1k5WRA0C |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Jacobsen |first = Joel |title = Such Men as Billy the Kid: The Lincoln County War Reconsidered |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SR9A9s2QHfkC |date = 1994 |publisher = University of Nebraska Press |location = Lincoln |isbn = 978-0-8032-2576-3 |oclc = 29429457 }}
* {{cite book |last = Keleher |first = William Aloysius |title = Violence in Lincoln County 1869–1881 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gABJ88abRooC |date = 2007 |orig-year = 1957 |publisher = Sunstone Press |location = Santa Fe, New Mexico |isbn = 978-0-86534-622-2 |oclc = 182573474 }}
* {{cite book |last1 = Klasner |first1 = Lily |last2 = Chisum |first2 = John Simpson |author-link2 = John Chisum |last3 = Ball |first3 = Eve |title = My Girlhood Among Outlaws |url = https://archive.org/details/mygirlhoodamongo00klas |url-access = registration |date = 1972 |publisher = University of Arizona Press |location = Tucson |isbn = 978-0-8165-0354-4 |oclc = 166482848 }}
* {{cite journal |last = Koop |first = Waldo E. |year = 1964 |title = Billy the Kid: The Trail of a Kansas Legend |journal = Kansas City Posse of Westerners |volume = IX |issue = 3 }}
* {{cite magazine|last=Lifson |first=Amy |title=Ben-Hur |magazine=Humanities |volume=30 |issue=6 |publisher=National Endowment for the Humanities |location=Washington, D.C. |date=2009 |url=http://www.neh.gov/news/humanities/2009-11/BenHur.html |access-date=August 27, 2014 |archive-date=March 5, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305215400/http://www.neh.gov/news/humanities/2009-11/BenHur.html |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite magazine |last = McCubbin |first = Robert G. |date = May 2007 |title = The Many Faces of Billy the Kid |magazine = True West |publisher = True West }}
* {{cite magazine |last = Metz |first = Leon C. |date = August 1983 |title = My Search for Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid |magazine = True West |publisher = True West }}
* {{cite book |last = Metz |first = Leon C. |title = Pat Garrett: The Story of a Western Lawman |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=_E7r2iowX6QC |date = 1983 |edition = reprint, revised |orig-year = 1974 |publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |location = Norman |isbn = 978-0-8061-1838-3 |oclc = 18722891 |ref = {{harvid|Metz|1974}} }}
* {{cite book |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |date = 2009a |title = The Life and Death of John Henry Tunstall |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=c5AZj3dbzj4C |publisher = Sunstone Press |location = Santa Fe, New Mexico |isbn = 978-0-86534-722-9 |oclc = 440562959 }}
* {{cite book |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |title = The Lincoln County War: A Documentary History |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=VRpiOdgkFDEC |edition = revised |date = 2009 |orig-year = 1992 |publisher = Sunstone Press |location = Santa Fe, New Mexico |isbn = 978-0-86534-721-2 |oclc = 319064671 |access-date = May 12, 2016 |archive-date = June 11, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190611135227/https://books.google.com/books?id=VRpiOdgkFDEC |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |title = The Lincoln County War: A Documentary History |date = 1992 |publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |location = Norman }}
* {{cite magazine |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |date = June 2003 |title = The Hunting of Billy the Kid |magazine = Wild West |publisher = Wild West }}
* {{cite book |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |date = 1998 |title = The West of Billy the Kid |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=mYhw78YF12IC |location = Norman |publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |isbn = 0-8061-3082-2 }}
* {{cite magazine |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |date = July 2000 |title = The Private Life of Billy the Kid |magazine = True West |publisher = True West }}
* {{cite book |last = Nolan |first = Frederick W. |author-link = Frederick W. Nolan |date = 2007 |title = The Billy the Kid Reader |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=AQ3FQtqmXuAC |location = Norman |publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |isbn = 978-0-8061-8446-3 }}
* {{cite book |last = Otero |first = Miguel |date = 2006 |orig-year = 1936 |title = The Real Billy the Kid, With New Light on the Lincoln County War |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JloxyqgoJnkC |location = New York |publisher = Sunstone Press |isbn = 978-1-61139-100-8 }}
* {{cite book |last = Poe |first = John William |date = 2006 |orig-year = 1933 |title = The Death of Billy the Kid |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=myQ6bUwH_UwC |publisher = Sunstone Press Company |location = Santa Fe |edition = reprint |isbn = 978-0-86534-532-4 }}
* {{cite magazine |last1 = Radbourne |first1 = Allan |last2 = Rasch |first2 = Phillip J. |date = August 1985 |title = The Story of 'Windy' Cahill |magazine = Real West |issue = 204 |publisher = Real West }}
* {{cite journal |last1 = Rasch |first1 = Philip J. |last2 = Mullin |first2 = Robert N. |year = 1953 |title = New Light on the Legend of Billy the Kid |journal = New Mexico Folklore Record 7 }}
* {{cite journal |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |year = 1954 |title = Dim Trails: The Pursuit of the McCarty Family |journal = New Mexico Folklore Record 8 }}
* {{cite journal |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |year = 1955 |title = The Twenty-One Men He Put Bullets Through |journal = New Mexico Folklore Record 9 }}
* {{cite magazine |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |date = January 1969 |title = A Second Look at the Blazer's Mill Affair |magazine = Frontier Times }}
* {{cite magazine |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |date = November 1987 |title = The Trials of Billy the Kid |magazine = Real West |issue = 216 |publisher = Real West }}
* {{cite book |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |date = 1995 |title = Trailing Billy the Kid |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JRVYPQAACAAJ |location = Stillwater, Oklahoma |publisher = Western Publications |isbn = 978-0-935269-19-2 }}
* {{cite book |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |date = 1997 |title = Gunsmoke in Lincoln County |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=4ygEAAAACAAJ |location = Stillwater, Oklahoma |publisher = Western Publications |isbn = 978-0-935269-24-6 }}
* {{cite book |last = Rasch |first = Philip J. |date = 1998 |title = Warriors of Lincoln County |location = Stillwater, Oklahoma |publisher = Western Publications |isbn = 978-0-935269-26-0 }}
* {{cite journal |last = Rickards |first = Colin W. |year = 1974 |title = The Gunfight at Blazer's Mill |journal = Southwestern Studies Monograph No. 40 |location = El Paso, Texas |publisher = Western Press }}
* {{cite book |last = Simmons |first = Mark |date = 2006 |title = Stalking Billy the Kid: Brief Sketches of a Short Life |publisher = Sunstone Press |isbn = 0-86534-525-2 }}
* {{cite web |last = Turk |first = David S. | authorlink = David S. Turk |url = http://www.historynet.com/billy-the-kid-and-the-us-marshals-service.htm |title = Billy the Kid and the U.S. Marshals Service |work = Wild West Magazine |date = February 2007 |access-date = November 2, 2017 |archive-date = August 17, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180817161341/http://www.historynet.com/billy-the-kid-and-the-us-marshals-service.htm |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Tuska |first = Jon |date = 1983 |title = Billy the Kid: A Handbook |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=6VbGeSIyfNcC |location = Lincoln |publisher = University of Nebraska Press |isbn = 0-8032-9406-9 }}
* {{cite book |last = Utley |first = Robert M. |author-link = Robert M. Utley |title = High Noon in Lincoln: Violence on the Western Frontier |url = https://archive.org/details/highnooninlincol00utle |url-access = registration |date = 1987 |publisher = University of New Mexico Press |location = Albuquerque|isbn = 978-0-8263-1201-3 |oclc = 15629305 |access-date = May 12, 2016 }}
* {{cite book |last = Utley |first = Robert M. |title = Billy the Kid: A Short and Violent Life |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=MKqfZ_U5MgAC |year = 1989 |publisher = University of Nebraska Press |location = Lincoln |isbn = 978-0-8032-9558-2 |oclc = 37868038 |access-date = May 12, 2016 |archive-date = June 11, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190611080048/https://books.google.com/books?id=MKqfZ_U5MgAC |url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last = Wallis |first = Michael |author-link = Michael Wallis |title = Billy the Kid: The Endless Ride |url = https://archive.org/details/billykidendlessr00wall |url-access = registration |year = 2007 |publisher = W.W. Norton & Co. |location = New York |isbn = 978-0-393-06068-3 |oclc = 77270750 |access-date = November 21, 2017 }}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090727111307/http://www.newmexico.org/billythekid/ Billy the Kid Territory] – guide by New Mexico Tourism Department
* [http://images.indianahistory.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/M0292/id/56/rec/14 Letter, 15 March 1879, Lew Wallace to W. H. Bonney], at the [[Indiana Historical Society]], Indianapolis
* [http://images.indianahistory.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/M0292/id/57/rec/16 Letter, 20 March 1879, W. H. Bonney to Lew Wallace], at the Indiana Historical Society, Indianapolis

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