The History Room
Interesting how he managed to escape from jail so many times, and all the aliases he used over time.
The Arrests of Billy the Kid
And more...Despite his young age, Billy the Kid managed to be arrested several times throughout his life. He also managed to be arrested for quite a variety of reasons: stealing clothes, horse and saddle theft, and, of course, murder. Yet what makes Billy so unique is that he never managed to stay incarcerated for long. There seems to have been no jail strong enough to contain him, because, through one way or another, he always went free. Though the local jails in the late 1800s were not terribly formidable, and Billy never went to a real prison, the likes of Leavenworth and such, his uncanny knack for escaping or being released from incarceration cannot be denied....
- Late Apr. 1875; Silver City, New Mexico Territory---Billy the Kid, at the time only known as Henry McCarty, is arrested by Grant County Sheriff Harvey Whitehill for throwing rocks at some of the local Chinamen and/or for stealing several pounds of butter from a local rancher named Abel L. Webb. Apparently, young Henry has been associating with a local gang of ruffians led by 'Sombrero Jack' Schaefer, who participated in the illegal acts with him. Henry apologizes and promises to never break the law again and Sheriff Whitehill, who only arrested the boy in an attempt to ''scare him straight,'' releases him.
- Sept. 23, 1875; Silver City, New Mexico Territory---Once again, Henry is arrested by Sheriff Whitehill, this time on a charge of stealing clothing from a local Chinese laundry. In actuality, it was Sombrero Jack who stole $200 worth of clothing and blankets from the laundry of Charley Sun and Sam Chung, and then gave Henry the merchandise to hold for him at his home with the Brown family. When Mrs. Sarah Brown discovered the stolen goods, she gave them to Whitehill, who then arrested Henry. Henry is held in jail, but is allowed to walk freely through the corridors and not placed in a cell. On the next day, when he is left unguarded, Henry manages to escape the jail by climbing up the chimney. He then visits his friends, the Truesdell family, who give him money before he flees New Mexico altogether for Arizona.
- Feb. 17, 1877; Globe, Arizona Territory---Kid Antrim, the name Henry McCarty is now going by, is arrested by the local constable on a warrant charging him with stealing a horse from Sgt. Louis Hartman at Camp Thomas. The constable takes Henry to Cedar Springs, where he is thrown in jail. Later in the day, through some unspecified means, Antrim manages to escape.
- Mar. 25, 1877; Hotel de Luna, near Fort Grant, Arizona Territory---Kid Antrim and a rustling friend of his, John Mackie, are arrested by Justice of the Peace Miles Wood as the two eat their breakfast in the hotel. At gunpoint, Wood then walks the two outlaws two-and-a-half miles to Fort Grant, where they are both thrown in the guardhouse. A short time later, the Kid asks his guard to take him out to use the privy, which the guard does. While outside, the Kid allegedly throws a handful of salt in the guard's eyes, yanks his pistol out of his holster, and tries to flee. The blinded guard calls for help, however, and several other guards come running and take down the Kid before he can get very far. Immediately afterwards, he has shackles placed on his ankles and wrists and is thrown back in the guardhouse. That night, a dance is held at the fort and the Kid is left in his cell unguarded. By the time the dance ends, the guards return to the guardhouse to find that the Kid has escaped, shackles and all. The method of his escape is never discovered, but it is believed that one or two local soldiers aided him.
- Nov. 1877; Seven Rivers, New Mexico Territory---Billy Bonney, the alias the Kid is now going by...
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Originally Posted by Calypso Jones
