Billy The Kid Essay, Research Paper

Billy the Kid

Billy the Kid is one of the most celebrated criminals in American history. He has been a widely told figure in American history every bit good as folklore. The rich person made films from his history and have besides wrote many books on him. Most of Billy the Kids life remains a het contention throughout America.

Billy the Kid was born in New York City on November 23, 1859 to William and Kathleen McCarty Bonney and given the name William H. Bonney ( There are other narratives of his birth but this one is the most dependable ) . The first recorded killing committed by Billy the Kid was on August 17, 1877. This is besides where he got his nickname Kid. The narrative has it that he got in a battle with a blacksmith in a barroom where the blacksmith slapped him and threw his to the floor. Knowing that he was no lucifer for the much bigger and older blacksmith he drew his gun and shot the blacksmith who died the following twenty-four hours. He was arrested but the at large and began running from the jurisprudence, something he did all of his life.

Billy the Kid finally moved to Lincoln County, New Mexico were he began working for J.H. Tunstall. Tunstall was a rich farming area proprietor who had an on-going feud with L.G. Murphy and J.J. Dolan over farming area and graze rights. Billy the Kid looked at Tunstall as a male parent and would make anything for him. But on February 18, 1878, Tunstall was gunned down by a group of deputies who were under the authorization of Sheriff William Brady who was a major Potato and Dolan protagonist. Billy the Kid swore retaliation and said he would non rest until the Murphy and Dolan group was dead. Billy had ended up killing most of the group but was still looking for Sheriff Brady. On April 1, 1878 Billy got his want. Billy and a group of five friends positioned themselves behind an adobe wall and waited for Brady and his Po

Se to come into town. When they eventually did Billy and his set of criminals opened fire from their ambuscade and killed Brady and his posse. Even though Billy used great scheme to derive the upper manus on Brady he was regarded as a coward for the ambuscade and lost the support of the people who had supported him.

While the Lincoln County War went on between Billy s pack and the new sheriff George Peppin, Lew Wallace the new governor had charged Billy with slaying. When Billy heard of this he told Wallace that he would turn provinces grounds on three slayers if he received a full forgiveness. Wallace agreed and met with Billy on March 17, 1879. When they eventually met Wallace was shocked to see a slender male child with merely a swoon chaff of face fungus, who was the most feared gunslinger in the West. Even though he agreed to attest he didn T want to give up so Wallace granted a bogus apprehension. Billy testified and with that it brought great celebrity. He reveled in this celebrity and couldn T get enough of it. After the test Billy agreed to be put on a mock test for slaying but Wallace guaranteed his release. Even though he was assured a forgiveness Billy decided to get away. That is when Wallace put a $ 500 monetary value on his caput and when one of his good friends Pat Garrett became a sheriff and was sent to look for him.

Billy the Kids decease is likely the greatest debated facet of his life. On July 14, 1881 while Billy was sing a Mexican adult female at the Maxwell spread Pat Garrett found him in the big spread house. In Garrett s study he stated that Billy came into the sleeping room armed with a handgun and a knife expressly to kill me if he could. I had no alternate but to kill him or endure decease at his custodies. It is reported that Billy had been shot in the dorsum while others report that Garrett had shot him right in the bosom. Either manner the brief calling of this criminal ended in a really short clip.