Henry
McCarty (alias William
Bonney & Kid
Antrim – later called Billy the Kid)was, by all reliable accounts, killed after the
Lincoln County War by
Sheriff Pat Garrett at
Fort Sumner,
New Mexico on 14 July 1881. He was about twenty years old when
Pat Garrett’s posse caught up with him at Stinking
Springs. Born Henry
McCarty he later went by the alias William
Bonney and "Kid
Antrim". The tabloid press created the name “Billy The Kid”, which he was identified by shortly before and since his death. Thought to have been born sometime around 1859-1861, perhaps in
New York,
Indiana or
Missouri although the actual date and place remain a mystery. His mother’s name was Catherine
McCarty, an
Irish woman, and his father’s identity is unknown. The only concrete information known is that his mother was named Catherine and that she married William
Antrim in Santa Fe,
New Mexico and they subsequently moved to Silver City,
New Mexico. He had a younger brother named Joseph. His genealogy has never been determined for certain, he was never married and did not have any children. Any claims of otherwise simply can no tbe proved.
Popular legend gives him far more credit than he is due. He is known to be solely responsible for the killing of four people; Frank
Cahill - done in self-defense, Joe
Grant - done in self-defense,
Deputy James Bell and
Deputy U.S. Marshal Bob Olinger while escaping from jail in
Lincoln. Although he was involved in shootouts that resulted in the deaths of Bill Morton, Frank Baker, William McCloskey, William
Brady, and George
Hindman there is no way to tell if his bullet was the one that found it's mark. He was described as being about 5'5' to 5'7" tall, a bit scrawny and of thin build and weighing about 140 pounds. He is said to have had unusually small hands and feet, like a woman, hazel eyes, and sandy colored hair. The only documented photo of him does not agree completely with this description, and depicts a young man of about 5-7 to 5-10 with average size hands and about normal build considering the distortion of the photograph.
All that said, your family history is probably wrong. If you can prove otherwise there are a lot of people who would be willing to pay good money for the information....believe me!!