Billy the Kid

• Billy the Kid is one of the aspects of this course most steeped in mythology
• Billy the Kid's legacy and why he became famous and popular
• One of the reasons we study Billy the Kid is to understand why people turn to crime in the so-called Wild West
• Key reasons people turned to crime in the Wild West

  • Poverty
  • Conflict over resources
  • Fear and intimidation
  • Independent attitudes
• Reasons for conflict over resources in the Wild West

  • Conflict between ranchers and homesteaders
  • Big ranchers vs. small ones
  • Conflict with Indians
• Factors contributing to the ability of gangs to thrive in the Wild West

  • Geography
  • Weak justice system
  • Corruption
  • Problematic lawmen
  • Vigilante justice
• Billy the Kid grew up in mining camps in New Mexico and had a reputation for escaping jail
• At 14 or 15, Billy the Kid got into trouble for stealing butter and continued stealing, including cattle rustling and horse stealing
• Billy the Kid got involved in the Lincoln County War in 1878, a conflict over resources between cattle baron John Chisholm and settlers/smaller ranchers
• Billy the Kid fought for Chisholm against Murphy's gang in the Lincoln County War
• Billy the Kid promised to kill anyone he considered involved in his friend's death, leading to a downward spiral of violence
• Local ranches appealed to the president to end the violence in New Mexico during the Lincoln County War
• A new governor and sheriff were appointed to deal with the issues of law and order in New Mexico
• Billy's friend's death

  Triggered a downward spiral of violence
• Local ranches appealed to the president to end the violence in New Mexico

  He appointed a new governor and a new sheriff specifically to deal with Billy the Kid
• Police capture, escape, and death of Billy the Kid

  Pat Garrett cornered Billy the Kid, captured him, brought him to court, judge sentenced him to death, but Billy made a dramatic and murderous escape, Garrett tracked him down again at Fort Sumner and shot him dead
• Billy the Kid was a violent, notorious thief and murderer
• Some people admired Billy the Kid as a romantic figure despite his violent acts
• Reasons why some people consider Billy the Kid a hero

  • Newspapers and cheap books wrote exciting stories of his crimes, he stood up to big businessmen, most violent acts were while he was a hired gun in fighting between unpopular cattle barons
• People didn't see Billy the Kid as a murderer due to the circumstances of his violent acts
• People liked how Billy the Kid stood up to the big businessmen
• People didn't like the weak justice system's inability to deal with Billy the Kid
• People like an underdog, even if they are a criminal
• Pat Garrett knew he would have to kill Billy the Kid after his escape
• Reasons for turning to crime in the West

  • Social, economic, and geographical factors, growing up in poverty, working as a hired gun, accumulating grudges
• Lawmen like Pat Garrett could be problematic
• Popular culture romanticizes figures like Billy the Kid, turning them into underdog anti-heroes
• Wild West films idolize figures like Billy the Kid