Billy the Kid Unmasked: The Real Story Behind the Wild West's Most Notorious Outlaw

The Early Years: From Henry McCarty to "Kid Antrim"

The wild, wild west, a place where outlaws could become members of law enforcement overnight, or vice versa for that matter, and a place where many would carve out a level of fame and fortune that would last far longer than their own lifetimes.
This was the case for Henry McCarty, son of Irish immigrants in New York City. No one could have expected the life that awaited young, baby Henry in those formative, early years, but there would be no mistaking the man he would become and the legacy he would leave behind.
Henry’s life was marred with tragedy early on when his father died, leaving his wife Catherine and their two sons alone in the new world. It’s more than likely that Catherine and her children had to live in the slums and on the streets of New York City, before Catherine was able to find the means to move her family to Indiana.
There, it would seem, their luck would change. Catherine met and married a man called William Antrim, who would also go on to adopt her sons. That was it. The foundations for a new, fresh lease on life had been provided for the now Antrim family, but for poor Catherine, it was too little too late.
Catherine began showing signs of suffering from tuberculosis; a disease that was at that point in time a death sentence.
Within a year of their fresh start, Henry McCarty was left an orphan. With Catherine gone, her new husband William turned his back on her sons, and they were left with nothing, not even a place to call home.

Tragedy and Survival: The Making of an Outlaw

Taking pity on the now only fourteen-year-old Henry, a local inn-keeper gave him a bed to sleep on in exchange for work. Shortly after, Henry would be caught stealing food. Shortly after that, he and a friend were arrested while robbing a Chinese laundrette.
Henry, however, managed to escape from jail by shimmying up a chimney. This was the birth of Henry McCarty the fugitive, but he wasn’t quite the man who would go down in infamy just yet.
From prison, Henry escaped to his stepfather’s house only to be met with the cold shoulder. William gave Henry some money to get by with and then showed him the door. Henry was once again, officially out on the streets. He quickly fell in with some outlaws and began stealing horses from soldiers. It was during this time that Henry would be given the nickname “Kid Antrim”. That was one step closer to the man who would go down as one of the all-time heroes of the Wild West, but not just because of his young age. “Kid” was a common nickname for juvenile delinquents at the time and Henry surely fit the profile.

The First Crimes and Prison Escapes

Shortly after he started stealing horses, Henry was caught and arrested yet again. In a magnificent display of dexterity and brazen confidence, he managed to escape from prison, even though he was wearing shackles, while the guards were out visiting a local dance.
In an even bigger show of brazen confidence, instead of fleeing Henry then returned to the same town and enjoyed a game of poker with a local blacksmith named Francis “Windy” Cahill. But it wasn’t showing back up in the same town he’d just been arrested in, or even the locals ratting him out, that would get Henry in trouble yet again, but himself.
Francis Cahill was known to pick on Henry and during this game of poker he reportedly accused Henry of being a pimp. Things then escalated which resulted in Francis pinning Henry to the ground and slapping him.
“(Billy) had no choice; he had to use his equalizer,” one witness later told local law enforcement. Billy being Henry and “his equalizer” being the gun that he and blacksmith Francis Cahill had fought over.
Henry McCarthy, aka Billy the Kid, then fled, leaving Francis Cahill bleeding from a gunshot wound to his stomach. Francis died the following day, officially making Billy the Kid a killer.
Maybe believing that witness testimony of that evening would be enough to clear his name, Billy returned to town a few days later only to be arrested. He would break out of jail, steal a horse and escape to New Mexico before facing the courts.

From Outlaw to Regulator: Enter the Lincoln County War

On his way there, Billy was attacked and his horse stolen by members of the Apache tribe. He was then forced to walk miles in treacherous conditions before finding refuge with a friend John Jones. By then, Billy was almost dead, and it was only through John Jones and his mother, Barbara Jones’, care that Billy survived. Without their intervention, the history books would be short one notable character and folk hero.
Now officially an outlaw and wanted for murder, Billy took to stealing cattle and horses, but he was caught yet again in Lincoln County. Here we see another twist of fate in Billy’s story. He was caught in possession of horses belonging to John Tunstall, a rising businessman and cattle rancher, but instead of pressing charges against Billy, John hired him to be a cowboy and a gunman.
But then, John Tunstall had a need for men who could protect his herd, not just from predators and the elements, but from the competition. He and his business partner, Alexander McSween, were sworn enemies of Lawrence Murphy, James Dolan and John Riley. In 1878, Alexander McSween owed James Dolan 8,000 dollars, the equivalent of over 250,000 dollars today.
Alexander sent the local sheriff to John Tunstall’s property to collect 40,000 dollars worth of property and livestock to cover what his business partner owed. Desperate to protect what was his, John entrusted Billy with nine horses and sent him away.
Only John could have more than likely have used the extra manpower and this was a move he would come to regret.
When the sheriff arrived with his own men to collect John’s cattle, John rode out to meet and stop them. During the conversation that followed, a member of the sheriff’s party shot John in the chest. John was knocked off his horse, but was still alive. That was until another member of the sheriff’s party got down off his horse, took John’s gun and shot him in the head.
John’s death sparked a fierce battle between men who had previously only been business rivals and most notable of those who remained on John Tunstall’s side was none other than Billy the Kid.

A Folk Hero in the Making

In what would become known as the Lincoln County War, Dick Brewer, John’s former foreman was granted the power to make arrests. He, Billy and a number of men formed a group known as the Regulators, all of whom were deputized and sent out on the hunt for the now outlaws who’d killed John.
Within a matter of days, they had captured three of James Dolan’s men, but all three of them would die before they ever made it to the jailhouse back in Lincoln. Chaos then ensued with gunfights breaking out on the daily and both sides suffering casualties.
Concerned over the growing turmoil, the governor of New Mexico, Samuel Beach Axtell, descended upon Lincoln. He then publicly reversed the decision to deputize the Regulators and in one fell swoop made the entire party outlaws.
This now meant that the Regulators were fair game, but that didn’t stop them on their quest to avenge John Tunstall.
Only about a month later, a group of about six Regulators, including Billy the Kid, spotted the sheriff who’d led the party against John Tunstall walking down the street. They hid themselves behind a ten-foot wall and opened fire. The sheriff was killed, but during the ensuing gunfight Billy was shot in the thigh.
He escaped and, unlike the sheriff, lived to fight another day.
Three days later, a buffalo hunter and cowboy, Buckshot Roberts tracked down the Regulators. Both he and the Regulators’ leader, Dick Brewer, were killed in the gunfight that followed.
This only added fuel to the growing fire. Now feeling like they no longer had to avenge John Tunstall but Dick Brewer too, the Regulators put up an even fiercer fight. Both sides had heavy losses, but in the eyes of the courts only the Regulators were breaking the law.

The Final Showdown and the Legend of Billy the Kid

After one fight across Lincoln County lasted for five days, army cavalry and infantry were sent into Lincoln to help keep the peace. They claimed that they were to be a neutral party in the conflict, but once they arrived at the house the Regulators were holed up in, they aimed their cannons at them and warned that they would blow the house up if anyone fired their weapon. Seeing this, several members of the Regulators fled the battle, leaving behind only thirteen members loyal to the cause.
The local sheriff then approached the house, set it on fire and demanded that everyone inside surrender.
It was then that Billy the Kid rose up to lead what remained of the Regulators. Desperate to save his brethren, Billy sacrificed himself and created a distraction so the other members could flee. In the resulting gunfight, most of the remaining Regulators were killed and James Dolan’s party claimed victory.
Billy the Kid, however, managed to escape yet again and rumor has it that he met with the infamous Missouri outlaw Jesse James on his way back to New Mexico. When he arrived there in early 1880, he posed for the only photo ever taken of him and the only one that remains with us to this day.
By the end of 1880, Billy was tracked down and pinned in his hideout. After a day of negotiation, Billy and his men agreed to surrender and were escorted into town to face justice. Court lasted for two days, where Billy the Kid’s reputation as a folk hero was visibly and notably solidified as people all across town came out to see him and show their support.
However, despite how the people clearly loved him, a jury would find Billy guilty of first degree murder and sentence him to death. To this day, he remains the only person to be convicted of any crimes in relation to the Lincoln County War.
The story goes that while awaiting his execution in jail, Billy caught wind that his lover, Paulita Maxwell, was expecting his child. Billy then asked one of the guards to take him out to the outhouse, but used the excursion to attack the guard, steal his weapon and shoot him. Billy then returned to the sheriff’s office and stole a shotgun. From there, he took aim out of the window and shot the other guard on station. Billy then stole a horse and fled.
The very next day word about Billy’s escape spread far and wide and a bounty was set for his arrest. He was tracked down by Sheriff Garret at his home, where he was shot and killed at the age of only 22.