In April 2015, media personality Bill O'Reilly weighed in on the topic by publishing his book Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Real West, in which he suggests that the evidence in favor of Brushy Bill Roberts outweighs the accepted version of history, citing the original Alias Billy the Kid book by Morrison and Sonnichsen. have been a fraud. Relatives going through Roberts possessions after his These guys were cowboys. Though numerous attempts have been made, the most recent in 2004, to definitively prove that Brushy Bill Roberts was Billy the Kid, none have been successful. Billy the Kid: The Lost InterviewsHistorian and professional treasure hunter W.C. Jameson has had many adventures, but none more exciting than the discovery of the original tapes of William H. "Brushy Bill" Roberts, who went before the Governor of New Mexico in 1950 seeking a pardon for crimes committed as the notorious outlaw Billy the Kid. The physical similarities of Billy the Kid and William Henry Roberts. The Kid wouldnt be Jose Montoya, for example, even signed an affidavit attesting to the fact. These systems are statistically proven for a 92% success rate in face recognition and employed But who really was J. Frank Dalton, and was his claim to being Jesse James really untrue? lawmen to be photographed in company with the dead outlaws. The 2014 book, Billy the Kid: An Autobiography by Daniel A. Edwards, tells the story of how former Hico resident William H. Brushy Bill Roberts came to have his picture taken alongside his own grave.. Skip ahead another 70 years and you have an elderly man known as Brushy Bill Roberts coming forward shattering the common historical narrative. Billy the Kid has been portrayed by Robert Utley as Young Guns I and II were both based around the Lincoln County War, a clash between rival frontier groups that began in 1878 in New Mexico Territory. New Mexico, it would come as no surprise that he would be found years later living under such a name as William Henry Roberts in a place like However, in the . But in 1950, a Texas man named "Brushy Bill" Roberts claimed that he was the real Billy the Kid and that someone else had been shot in his place. Billy the Kid (a nickname for a man born Henry McCarty and later known as William H. Bonney) was an outlaw who lived a short but tumultuous life. wasnt born in New York City theres simply no documented evidence to support the claim that he was and he didnt die in Fort Sumner, New Morrison immediately reached out to Roberts, and over the course of their correspondence got him to confess to being Billy the Kid. Could DNA testing resolve once and for all who lies buried beneath the Kids New Mexico headstone, or would it merely cast fresh doubt on a 122-year-old legend? Please try again. interest for Morrison, since he was related to the Maxwell family of Fort Sumner. Please try again. A Tale of Two Bills. A good case in point is the violent demise of the Dalton Im the governor, I want to see promotion, I want to see tourism go up. A disputed photo that may depict Billy the Kid (center). photos would be to him. With the truth of whether Bonney was killed that fateful night in 1881 so shrouded in mystery, Giudicissi expanded the project to include a dramatized version of a real trial to examine which evidence remains for each of the 3 potential outcomes for Billy the Kid. Brushy Bill Roberts: The Man Who Claimed To Be Billy The Kid. He could easily have arranged for one if he had so chosen. If Brushy Bill was not Billy the Kid, he must have been at the Kids elbow when some of these things happened, Edwards wrote in his book. Edwards, 46, is a researcher and publisher who lives in a suburb of Philadelphia. A photograph of Brushy Bill at age 71 was a 93% match. Brett Hall, author of "The Real Billy The Kid, alias Brushy Bill Roberts" told historian, Dr. Jannay Valdez that he had been given access to the original notebooks, papers and tapes handed down from Morrison to his currently living . identification of Roberts as Billy the Kid as well as the events leading up top the discovery of the lost interviews tapes. Scars: A postmortem which was performed on Roberts following his death in 1950, verified the existence of scars on We dont have much to live off of other than the legend, so we have to protect it.. The actual parameters of comparison used to compare the two photos are too Land said that after Garrett shot the man in Fort Sumner, a deputy sheriff rolled over the body and told Garrett it was not Billy the Kid. definitive proof, because if the man that Garrett killed wasnt Billy the Kid, like Garrett claims it was, then he certainly wouldnt have wanted that Pat Garrett killed the right man? Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. The study was supervised by Dr. The man who was known for many years as J. Frank Dalton and who now claims that he is Jesse James, notorious Missouri outlaw of many decades ago, is. He found him there, living in a little place called Hico. The consensus seems to be that Billy the Kid died at age 21 on July 14, 1881 in the town of Fort Sumner in New Mexico Territory, shot dead by Garrett. Eyes: Perhaps the most remarkable characteristic about Billy the Kid were his eys. We work hard to protect your security and privacy. And if he didnt kill Billy, then who did he kill? The Texas grave belongs to William "Brushy Bill" Roberts, who waited until 1950 to confess that he was the Kid, when he was 90. Circa 1879-1880. Edwards richly detailed book about Billy the Kid is full of fascinating information uncovered by Edwards. So which story is correct? He was a gunman. When he died in 1950, Brushy Bill Roberts was buried in Hico, Texas under a headstone claiming he was Billy the Kid. I've read other books trying to refute the claims of Brushy Bill, but it was obvious that those authors had hidden agendas in trying to cover the truth. It's a guide to the Wicked movie. loses credibility. Roberts. Science and the kidTheoretically, DNA testing could indeed show which individuals are related to each other, and which are not, all on the basis of samples taken from remains. In 1948, a probate investigator from St. Louis, William V. Morrison, located an elderly man named Joe Hines, who had claimed the lands of his deceased brother. yielded an MSE (mean squared error) of just 3.0. We are sorry. Brushy Bill Roberts: The Man Who Claimed To Be Billy The Kid Brushy invited the visitor inside and introduced him to his wife, Melinda. Photos of Brushy Bill Roberts, Page 3 Tunstall gave him a job as a cowboy. Manuel Taylor, who was a boyhood friend of Billys when he lived in Silver City, claimed to have seen him in 1914 at a bullfight in Billy the Kids fame as a notorious outlaw had spread beyond the boundaries of this country by the time of his supposed death at the hand of Pat Billy the Kid:The Lost Interviews - amazon.com 184 pages, Taylor Trade Publishing; Reprint edition, 2008. Meet the Texas Man Who Claimed to be Billy the Kid photos of Roberts show a remarkable similarity. [12] Morrison also attempted to track down former Jesse Evans gang member Jim McDaniels, and located him in Round Rock, Texas. Texas, that man did not seek public attention and at first denied that he was once known as Billy Bonney. Brushy Bill Roberts, AKA Billy the Kid: Was He Illiterate? been fixed into immortality upon a photographic plate. He took Roberts to Santa Fe, to seek an interview and pardon from the governor. Marshall Trimble, the official historian of Arizona, cites Frederick Nolan, an authority on the life and times of Billy the Kid, who refers to a letter sent in 1987 by Mrs. Geneva Pittmon to Joe Bowlin, the founder of a history buff group called the "Billy the Kid Gang, Inc.", in which she stated that her uncle, the man known as "Brushy Bill", was named Oliver P. Roberts, and that he was born August 26, 1879, according to the family Bible. notorious outlaw? Surely, Pete Maxwell would not have permitted his sister to be abused in such manner, and, even if he did, Paulita herself Roberts, new evidence discovered in the 1990s, and sophisticated photo comparison technology by the FBI, the conclusion that Roberts was Billy the Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. Texas at Austin are indisputable. Audio Recording of Brushy Bill Roberts - The Voice of Billy the Kid The initiative hit snags from the beginning, including the fact that no confirmation exists as to where the remains are located, and ensuing legal obstacles. based largely upon a book that has been described by some historians as containing several contradictions and even a few outright lies. I believe if Miss Antrim were alive, she would state, Ill gladly donate my DNA because I want you to prove that that is my son.. I invite you to explore this page to learn more about the legend of William Henry Roberts, aka Brushy Bill, aka Billy the Kid. death found a jar containing two large front teeth. [citation needed]. (Getty Images/Wikipedia) Legend has it that William Bonney, aka Billy the Kid, died at the tender age of 21. Billy the Kid: Beyond the Grave traces the life of this famous desperado through his role in the Lincoln County War, the alleged killing by In 1949 investigator William V. Morrison, along with folklorist and writer Dr. Read more, The mystery of J. Frank Dalton did not want had been killed. They say the only reputed heir of Billy the Kid, self-proclaimed great-grandson Elbert Garcia, supports the request. Mexico. That scene was also witnessed by a U.S. marshal who filed notice of it, according to Land. study involved a computerized recognition system. Roberts. I'm old and I just don't feel like being obligated so" Bill Jones' grandson expressed doubts about the veracity of Roberts' claims in a letter of refusal written on his grandfather's behalf. Giudicissi helms the project as writer and director while Royd McCargish steps in as Executive Producer. heir. Billy the Kid: Beyond the Grave After finishing his probate work with Joe Hines (aka Jesse Evans), Morrison traveled to Hamilton County, Texas to look for Brushy Bill Roberts. Billy the Kid:The Lost Interviews Sonnichsen, re-examined the subject and released Billy the Kid: Beyond the Grave. He was accused of murdering a blacksmith in Arizona Territory in 1877. front teeth. anyone to learn the identity of who he really did kill. There are several people who were Billy The Kid - General Message Board - The Sign Syndicate completely. The tests proposed for Antrim and her purported progeny would analyze mitochondrial DNA, which is passed down virtually intact from a mother to her children. Believing Brushy Bill Roberts to be Billy the Kid, William Morrison wrote a book on the subject. Clad in cowboy hat, boots and buckskin jacket, he regaled folks with his wild tales of Old West adventures. Read more, Did Pat Garrett Kill the Wrong Man? But in 1950, a Texas man named Brushy Bill Roberts claimed that he was the real Billy the Kid and that someone else had been shot in his place. such teeth until they were removed by Dr. Cruz, a dentist in Gladewater, Texas in 1931. So persuasive was Morrisons book that even former president Harry Truman was convinced. [3] His claim was explored in a 2011 episode of Brad Meltzer's Decoded and a segment by Robert Stack in 1989 on Unsolved Mysteries. Guadalajara, Mexico. The study was supervised by Dr. Billy the Kid Killed in New Mexico Died in Texas We dont share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we dont sell your information to others. Phillip Vasquez, a Stephenville attorney who lives with wife Lucy on a ranch near Hico, has been planning the last two years for the re-launch of the festival, Nov. 1-2. DNA testing has gotten off the ground and sophisticated facial match testing between photographs of Roberts and the Kid have proven tantalizing to believers, though ultimately the results have been mixed and inconclusive. he had shown such a propensity for adopting alias for most of his life. Photos of Brushy Bill Roberts, Page 1 Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. well and who reported having seen him in the years after his supposed death at the hands of Pat Garrett. I think we are now realizing that a lot of history is not exactly as recorded so it is very possible that Brushy Bill Roberts was Billy The Kid. One remarkable passage, under the header, A page from an interview with Brushy Bill Roberts, June 16, 1949, at Hamilton, Texas, quotes Billy as saying: All these years I have been running and hiding when I knew I wasnt wrong. You take a small town such as Fort Sumner we are very, very, very dependent upon our tourism base.. Sonnichsen, but virtually every single one was based upon Pat Garrett's published account from 1882, and Garrett's book, mostly a concoction of factual material mixed with fabrications written by Roswell's postmaster, Ash Upson,[18][19][20] established the Kid legend for subsequent decades. Guadalajara, Mexico. How to capitalize on fake history with your own book! Kids name and address and the old man finally consented. In a letter to Morrison, Truman expressed his support and lamented that Roberts died before he could go in front of the governor in hopes of getting that pardon he wanted. The town of Hico, TX maintains that "Brushy" Bill Roberts was The Kid, and he in fact went in front of New Mexico Governor Thomas Mabry in 1950 asking for the pardon he says he was promised by Territorial Governor Lew Wallace in 1878. The Brushy Bill story led to the opening of the popular Billy the Kid Museum, on North Pecan Street in downtown Hico in 1987. Kid gains support. Brushy Bill Roberts and Billy the KidThe Complete Facts Using state-of-the-art facilities designed for such studies, the photographs were He never spoke publicly about the shooting, although various second-hand sources The actual parameters of comparison used to compare the two photos are too The information could only have come from someone who had been there and participated. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m8H-TwLbFo\u0026t=3sBrushy Bill Roberts, AKA Billy the Kid: Could He Speak Spanish?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGVw1RMxjWg\u0026t=3sBrushy Bill Roberts, AKA Billy the Kid: Did He Really Claim To Be A Member Of The James Gang?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQYrXql6dCc\u0026t=2sBrushy Bill Roberts, AKA Billy the Kid: Was He Really Oliver P. Roberts, Born In 1879?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EK9oRxqmee0\u0026t=126sBrushy Bill Roberts AKA Billy the Kid: Physical Similarities \u0026 Facial Recognition Studyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8KpyQTdBfk\u0026t=291sMy name is Brett Hall, and I'm the author of the book, The Real Billy the Kid AKA Brushy Bill Roberts. As Morrison listened intently, Hines revealed that his friend, Ollie Roberts, also known as Brushy Bill Roberts, of Hico, Texas was none other than Billy the Kid. Guess what happens? Fort Sumner Mayor Lopez asked. services. Scars: A postmortem which was performed on Roberts following his death in 1950, verified the existence of scars on by Severo Gallegos on November 11, 1950, Roberts had exactly the same kind of eyes. Ollie L. "Brushy - Hamilton County Historical Commission - Facebook I will also debunk a new theory brought forth by neo-historians and those that support maintaining the historical status quo that Roberts obtained his knowledge of Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War by memorizing The Saga of Billy the Kid by Walter Noble Burns. Numerous books have been published since 1950 examining Brushy's claim, the first of which was Alias Billy the Kid, written by Morrison and the Western historian C.L. Billy the Kid: The Lost Interviews uncovers the original source material for William V. Morrison and C.L. Ive got attorneys coming out of the woodwork on a pro bono basis.. Discovered quite by accident in a small town in Billy the Kid and two different photos of William Henry Roberts at different ages are all pictures of the same man. criminals around the world, technology that can see right through age and disguises, telling us that the only known authenticated photograph of He gave Billys current name as Ollie L. Brushy Bill Roberts and his address as Morrison vouchsafed that upon examination of Roberts's stripped body, he showed 26 bullet and knife scars. However it comes out, it keeps the legend alive, Metz said. The Old Man Who Claimed to Be Billy the Kid - Atlas Obscura Learn more how customers reviews work on Amazon, CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2nd edition (July 22, 2017). His story certainly is very convincing and he definitely looks like the young guy in the famous tintype. ", "Jesse Wants His "True" Name; Asks Court For Official Rule", "Billy the Kid's DNA sparks legal showdown", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Brushy_Bill_Roberts&oldid=1152320838, This page was last edited on 29 April 2023, at 14:34. Now her doubts are gone, and she is confident that Brushy Bill was Billy the Kid. That question may never be answered with any of whether or not Pat Garrett killed Billy on that summer night in Fort Sumner, New Mexico on 14 July 1881. A cropped version of the sole fully authenticated photo of Billy the Kid.