1859 July 14th. Billy the Kid.

Billy the Kid

Billy the Kid
Billy the Kid posing for a ferrotype photograph
Born	William Henry McCarty November 23, 1859 Manhattan, New York, United States(unspecified)
Died	July 14, 1881 (aged 21) Fort Sumner, New Mexico Territory,United States
Cause of death	Gunshot
Resting place	Old Fort Sumner Cemetery 34°24′13″N 104°11′37″W
Other names	William H. Bonney, William McCarty, Henry McCarty, Henry Antrim, Kid Antrim
Occupation	Livestock Rustler (Horses only) Cowboy Outlaw Gambler
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Parents	Father: unknown possibly Patrick Henry McCarty or Michael McCarty or William Bonney Stepfather: William Antrim Mother: Catherine McCarty Catherine McCarty Antrim Katherine McCarty Bonney
Relatives	Half-brother: Joseph McCarty

William H. Bonney (born William Henry McCarty, Jr. c. November 23, 1859– c. July 14, 1881), better known as Billy the Kid and also known as William Antrim, was a 19th-century gunman who participated in the Lincoln County War and became a frontier outlaw in the American Old West. According to legend, he killed 21 men, but it is generally believed that he killed 8 people. He killed his first man in April 1 1877 at the age of 18.

McCarty (or Bonney, the name he used at the height of his notoriety) was 5'8" (173 cm) tall with blue eyes, blond hair or dirty blond hair, and a smooth complexion. He was described as being friendly and personable at times, and as lithe as a cat. Contemporaries described him as a "neat" dresser who favored an "unadorned Mexicansombrero". These qualities, along with his cunning and 

celebrated skill with firearms, contributed to his paradoxical image as both a notorious outlaw and a folk hero.

Billy was relatively unknown during most of his lifetime but was catapulted into legend in 1881 when New Mexico's governor,Lew Wallace, placed a price on his head. In addition, the Las Vegas Gazette (Las Vegas, New Mexico) and the New York Suncarried stories about his exploits. Other newspapers followed suit. Several biographies written about Billy the Kid after his death portrayed him in varying lights.

• 
  
• 
  
• • 
    
• •