What Happened To Billy the Kid's Winchester?

Above, Billy the Kid's grave in Fort Sumner, New Mexico in 2024. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Billy the Kid's Winchester: The Mystery of His Lost Rifle video by Ghosts of the Frontier.

Summary:

What happened to Billy the Kid's favorite Winchester rifle after Pat Garrett shot him in 1881? This video investigates the mysterious disappearance and sudden reappearance of one of the Old West's most famous weapons.

On April 28, 1881, William H. Bonney—better known as Billy the Kid—made his legendary escape from the Lincoln County Courthouse in Lincoln, New Mexico. After killing Deputies James Bell and Bob Olinger, he grabbed a Winchester Model 1873 rifle from the courthouse armory before fleeing. Just 77 days later, Sheriff Pat Garrett tracked him to Pete Maxwell's ranch in Fort Sumner and shot him dead in Maxwell's darkened bedroom.

According to historical records, Garrett recovered Billy's Winchester that night. But then the rifle vanished from the historical record for over a century. Unlike other Billy the Kid artifacts with clear documentation, this Winchester left almost no paper trail during the crucial years after the outlaw's death.

In 2021, a Winchester 1873 (serial number 20181, manufactured in 1876) sold at Bonhams Auction House for $300,000, claiming to be Billy's rifle. The provenance states Pat Garrett gave it to cattle baron Joseph C. Lea, who had it displayed at the New Mexico Military Institute from 1898-1925. But the earliest documented evidence is a notarized statement from 1897—sixteen years after Billy's death.

This video examines the evidence for and against this rifle's authenticity, exploring the gaps in the chain of custody, the proliferation of Winchester rifles in 1880s New Mexico, and why the documentation only becomes solid decades after Billy the Kid became a legend.