Where did billy the kid become a famous outlaw?

Answer 1

Yes. Yes. Yes. His real name was William H. Bonnet. Now was he a cold-blooded killer??? That is the real question. Depending on what side you would have taken, BIG "Corporate" ranchers/ railroad or the "sod busters." The answer will definitely vary. He was basically a man who did what it took to survive the times and with what he had, quick-wit and a gun.

Answer 2

Billy the Kid lived in New Mexico for most of his life. He moved around when he was a kid. He wasn't a famous outlaw until he was put in jail and the media exaggerated everything about him. Most of the stuff he was blamed for wasn't even his fault. There was also a book written by his killer that exaggerated Billy.

But ya, New Mexico and because of the media

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He mostly became famous after reporting on the Lincoln County War in New Mexico. By that time he had already been arrested for theft and for shooting a man in a fight (possibly the shooting was self-defense). He also did some cattle rustling before being hired by John Tunstall to work on his ranch. None of his prior activities would have made him particularly famous if he had not been involved in the "Lincoln County War" where two different groups were competing over cattle interests and dry goods sales in the county. One side had been around a while and had a monopoly. The new-comers opened a competing store that cut into the business of the monopoly and had their own ranches. The war involved a lot of fighting and revenge killings and made for good copy for both regional newspapers and even some as far away as New York. There was some controversy about his death - including accusations that Sheriff Pat Garrett ambushed Billy, the Sheriff got a journalist friend, to ghostwrite a book about the whole thing. (The book didn't sell many copies but it because much used as a reference source by historians). Having been written about so much, "Billy the Kid" it's not so surprising that "Billy the Kid" because famous.

Answer 3

No. He killed his first man when he was 14 and had reputedly killed 20 more before Pat Garret shot him just 7 years later. He wore a badge in the Lincoln County War, but both sides were hired guns deputized by different politians.

Answer 4

If you mean did he have solo gunfights, no. Billy the Kid was a key figure in the Lincoln County War in New Mexico. He fought for the Tunstall faction. Credited with 21 killings at the time of his death, there are only four verified kills that can be credited to his. He participated in shootouts involving dozens of men on both sides which accounts for the 21 total deaths. The Tunstall posse were known as The Regulators. In their minds they were fighting a corrupt sheriff and the MacSween political faction. Naturally, the opposing side thought the Tunstall faction were the outlaws. Billy achieved national fame by breaking out of jail where he was awaiting execution. He was later killed by former friend Pat Garret, the new sheriff. Whether Garret knew Billy was unarmed or not has long been a point of controversy among westernologists.

Answer 5

Yes. It may not have happened exactly as Pat Garret described it, but he definitely did shoot and kill Billy.

Answer 6

yes he was indeed. He was shot in his left shoulder and was injured

Answer 7

he was a hero to some people