Billy the Kid seen in Denver a few days before the shooting
Apr 7, 2022 11:02:14 GMT -5
cassandra jane, RonBk, and 2 more like this
Post by MissyS on Apr 7, 2022 11:02:14 GMT -5
In June 5,1881 in the Las Vegas Daily Gazette, there was an eyewitness named Frank Blacklidge who claimed seeing Billy the Kid in a dance hall in Amargo, the location was at the terminus of the San Juan Extension of the D.& R.G. R’y (I believe it stands for Denver and Rio Grand Railway which I believe is close to the New Mexico Colorado border). The witness named Frank Blacklidge claimed he knew who he saw for sure and asked some reliable sources and was also confirmed that it was the New Mexico Billy the Kid. Blacklidge stated he was familiar with the likes of Billy LeRoy, (the other Billy the Kid) so it doesn’t seem like he had mistaken the Kid for him. He stated that the Kid was armed for business with two six shooters and three belts of cartridges on him, and three men with him, and he had seven men camped outside of town. Billy wasn’t exactly nervous according to Blacklidge but he took great precaution that no one came up behind him. The article stated that Charlie Allison held up various stray people and took in several saloons and stores, and according to Blacklidge Billy the Kid had it in for Allison and the latter was afraid of him.
That sighting of Billy happened roughly five weeks before the shooting in Fort Sumner, this is interesting because there’s yet another eyewitness to seeing Billy the Kid in Denver in a Las Vegas Gazette July, 12,1881 however the witness saw him a day earlier on July 11th, in that brief article, the witness that saw him had traveled a lot in the south and had often seen Billy the Kid, he told the Tribune with his utmost assurance that Billy the Kid’s mission in Denver was to murder two men there that assisted in his capture. The article did mentioned it was a little improbable and was dismissed by authorities. (Why print it if it was improbable?)
If these accounts are true, then here’s a barrage of questions..
Could it be possible Billy the Kid went to Colorado sometime after his escape from the Lincoln jail, maybe to go after a couple of men that he wanted revenge on? Perhaps he couldn’t find them there and went to Fort Sumner NM. I read that Barney Mason was a man Billy could have been looking for? I also wonder if Billy may have gone into Denver to seek refuge with Joseph Antrim who I believed may have been living in Denver, but perhaps that didn’t work out. Could he have passed through Amargo on the way to Denver? Looking at a map of the Maxwell Land Grant, the Maxwell’s owned property up into Colorado, I don’t know how much of this land was still owned in 1881, so could Billy have been working for Pete on part of his property that may have been near Amargo? I don’t know how Billy could have been in Denver just three days before the shooting in Fort Sumner? The other questions I have is Charlie Allison, could he have been Clay Allison? I did find a reference of a Charlie Allison that was an outlaw in Colorado he was a lawman that turned outlaw, Charlie Allison was appointed deputy Sheriff of Conjos County, Colorado but soon organized a band of outlaws robbing stages between Colorado and New Mexico, he was captured in 1881 by Sheriff Matt Kyle and sent to prison. He was released in 1890. I also found a reference that Charlie Siringo had assumed the identity of Charles Leon Allison at a time. Siringo met up with Billy the Kid while he and some Regulators camped out near Tascosa. Since Siringo worked for Pinkerton could he had assisted somehow with Billy’s capture? maybe he assisted with the counterfeiting investigation that could have given Billy a cause to go after him? Siringo was a detective so I don’t think he would have held up stray people in Amargo however. I also wonder if these reports were not true could a pal of Billy’s had reported these two sightings of Billy to the news paper to throw Pat Garrett and any bounty hunters off Billy’s trail and these reports were purposely faked? What I noticed thats kinda interesting to me is that J H Koogler was the editor of the Las Vegas Gazette in 1881, and I believe he was the same editor that visited the Kid in the jail in Las Vegas and gave his description of his peach fuzz and youthful look, he also I think was the person that may have first coined the nickname “Billy the Kid” before that name Billy was referred to as just “Kid”. J H Koogler was editor of the page on the article about Billy seen in Denver and his name as editor on page two of the June 5th 1881 Las Vegas Gazette that included the article of Billy seen in Amargo as well, could J H Koogler had himself entered these two reports to help Billy by throwing Garrett off his trail? Perhaps Koogler and Billy became pals during the visit to the jail? Even Pat Garrett himself could have put those reports in the press to steer the bounty hunters away from Billy after he got word Billy was in Fort Sumner? There’s many possibilities.
That sighting of Billy happened roughly five weeks before the shooting in Fort Sumner, this is interesting because there’s yet another eyewitness to seeing Billy the Kid in Denver in a Las Vegas Gazette July, 12,1881 however the witness saw him a day earlier on July 11th, in that brief article, the witness that saw him had traveled a lot in the south and had often seen Billy the Kid, he told the Tribune with his utmost assurance that Billy the Kid’s mission in Denver was to murder two men there that assisted in his capture. The article did mentioned it was a little improbable and was dismissed by authorities. (Why print it if it was improbable?)
If these accounts are true, then here’s a barrage of questions..
Could it be possible Billy the Kid went to Colorado sometime after his escape from the Lincoln jail, maybe to go after a couple of men that he wanted revenge on? Perhaps he couldn’t find them there and went to Fort Sumner NM. I read that Barney Mason was a man Billy could have been looking for? I also wonder if Billy may have gone into Denver to seek refuge with Joseph Antrim who I believed may have been living in Denver, but perhaps that didn’t work out. Could he have passed through Amargo on the way to Denver? Looking at a map of the Maxwell Land Grant, the Maxwell’s owned property up into Colorado, I don’t know how much of this land was still owned in 1881, so could Billy have been working for Pete on part of his property that may have been near Amargo? I don’t know how Billy could have been in Denver just three days before the shooting in Fort Sumner? The other questions I have is Charlie Allison, could he have been Clay Allison? I did find a reference of a Charlie Allison that was an outlaw in Colorado he was a lawman that turned outlaw, Charlie Allison was appointed deputy Sheriff of Conjos County, Colorado but soon organized a band of outlaws robbing stages between Colorado and New Mexico, he was captured in 1881 by Sheriff Matt Kyle and sent to prison. He was released in 1890. I also found a reference that Charlie Siringo had assumed the identity of Charles Leon Allison at a time. Siringo met up with Billy the Kid while he and some Regulators camped out near Tascosa. Since Siringo worked for Pinkerton could he had assisted somehow with Billy’s capture? maybe he assisted with the counterfeiting investigation that could have given Billy a cause to go after him? Siringo was a detective so I don’t think he would have held up stray people in Amargo however. I also wonder if these reports were not true could a pal of Billy’s had reported these two sightings of Billy to the news paper to throw Pat Garrett and any bounty hunters off Billy’s trail and these reports were purposely faked? What I noticed thats kinda interesting to me is that J H Koogler was the editor of the Las Vegas Gazette in 1881, and I believe he was the same editor that visited the Kid in the jail in Las Vegas and gave his description of his peach fuzz and youthful look, he also I think was the person that may have first coined the nickname “Billy the Kid” before that name Billy was referred to as just “Kid”. J H Koogler was editor of the page on the article about Billy seen in Denver and his name as editor on page two of the June 5th 1881 Las Vegas Gazette that included the article of Billy seen in Amargo as well, could J H Koogler had himself entered these two reports to help Billy by throwing Garrett off his trail? Perhaps Koogler and Billy became pals during the visit to the jail? Even Pat Garrett himself could have put those reports in the press to steer the bounty hunters away from Billy after he got word Billy was in Fort Sumner? There’s many possibilities.
