Billy the Kid 1881 Santa Fe New Mexico Territory Newspaper William H. Bonney

Description: Original Friday, May 27, 1881 issue of the Santa Fe Daily New Mexican newspaper out of Santa Fe, New Mexico Territory featuring a contemporary account of the notorious outlaw Billy the Kid. 4 pp. Billy the Kid (born Henry McCarty; 1859-1881), also known by the pseudonyms William H. Bonney and Kid Antrim, was an outlaw and gunfighter of the Old West, who killed eight men before he was shot and killed at the age of 21. He fought in New Mexico's Lincoln County War, during which he allegedly committed three murders. The article on Page 4, Columns 2 and 3, reads as follows, The Socorro Miner of the 26th inst. was being sold upon the streets yesterday upon the ground that it contained an account of the capture of Billy the Kid. A good many curious persons bit and bought and found that the paper had a very unsatisfactory dispatch which read as follows: The sheriff of Del Norte after a sharp fight succeeded in capturing Billy the Kid at a point about fifteen miles from this place (Del Norte). As incomplete as the information was, it formed the basis of a general rumor which went the rounds to the effect that the Kid was in limbo in Colorado. This may be true and it may not be true, just as it possible that the Kid is a prisoner somewhere in Texas, but to say the least it is rather improbable. In the first place Kid is not supposed to be in Colorado, and in the second place it is not probable that the news would have reached Socorro before being received by Governor Wallace, or at any other place in the Territory. However it is to be hoped that the Miner is not off on a sensation altogether, and there is some ground at least for the report. The authorities want the Kid and “want him bad.” Billy the Kid had been held at the Lincoln County courthouse for the murder of Lincoln County Sheriff William J. Brady in Lincoln, New Mexico on April 1, 1878 as reprisal for John Tunstall's murder 6 weeks prior during the Lincoln County War. He was convicted by a territorial court in Mesilla, New Mexico on April 13, 1881, and sentenced to hang. On April 28, 1881, Billy escaped from jail and in the process murdered Bob Olinger and Deputy Sheriff James W. Bell who had been assigned to guard him. This May 27 article was written while Billy was on the run after that escape and murder. Billy the Kid was finally tracked down less than 2 months after this report and killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett at Fort Sumner, New Mexico Territory on July 14, 1881. The paper contains other interesting articles and many ads for saloons, stagecoach lines, Santa Fe photographer W. Henry Brown, etc. Forgive some of the fuzzy photos as I photographed some of the ads a bit too close. While articles on Billy the Kid's exploits occasionally traveled back east and made the newspapers in New York, Chicago, etc., especially after his death, surviving contemporary accounts from local New Mexico newspapers are extremely scarce. A great piece of Old West history! * CONDITION: Overall Very Good+ with some small edge tears and small paper loss at the margins in a few spots. "Library of Congress" stamp at top of page 1 in the margin. This paper was deaccessioned by the LOC years ago in a microfilm project with the New Mexico State Archives. Further info can be provided to the buyer. Newspaper is fragile and will be shipped securely in an archival sleeve and rigid holder. * SIZE: Measures approximately 17 1/4 x 23 inches.

Price: 1950 USD

Location: Pennsylvania

End Time: 2025-01-13T16:03:03.000Z

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