The Gun That Killed Billy The Kid Just Sold for $6 Million
The Gun That Killed Billy The Kid Just Sold for $6M. BBB Thinks He Knows Who bought it, And Why.
Bob Boze Bell (BBB) is known as America's Western Storyteller. He is an artist, author, writer and serves as executive editor of True West magazine. Bell is a popular, sought-after figure in television documentaries about the Old West, appearing as an expert in dozens of Wild West history shows. Bell won an Emmy Award as Executive Producer of the PBS special, Outrageous Arizona, a zany look at the state's centennial, that he also wrote and helped direct. As an author, Bell has brought to life Billy the Kid, Geronimo, Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp and Wild Bill Hickok in his best-selling Illustrated Life and Times series. His books Classic Gunfights I, II and III are must-reads about the most important Old West gunfights. Bell’s Bad Men is now in its fourth printing, while his illustrated autobiography, The 66 Kid: Raised on the Mother Road, gives personal insight into the passions that have driven him on his lifelong quest to interpret the history of the American West for audiences around the world.
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Thank you Bob for this summary of one of the best stories of the Old West which often requires longer to tell. I have been collecting guns for 60 years and I know the Colt is the one which Garrett used to kill the Kid, among other reasons because I knew many of the principals involved, and there is an unbroken chain of ownership from Wilson to Garrett and the provenance since is well established and accepted by all veteran gun collectors. As Bob pointed out, as many claims to the "gun that killed Billy the Kid" have been made as the same claim to "Pancho Villa's saddle" which has been a joke among collectors for many years, but this gun is the real thing and went to the good home of a worthy collector dedicated to preserving the history of the American West.
Garrett didn't kill Billy. His deputies did.
@@usmcmustang2972 kzhead.info/sun/lM2Dd7xlln6oeIk/bejne.html
A lot of people in Hico Texas would disagree about Billy the Kid getting killed anywhere other than in Hico Texas.
i am on my wifes channel watching this segment,but i wanted to let you know how much i enjoy your work.we are about the same age and i have followed your work for years .i find it to be the truth as best as it can be found. thank you BBB tyrell santee
I still question whether Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid. If he did, why did they hurriedly bury his body and not parade it around and show it off like they usually did famous outlaws that was killed?
A good point but not conclusive. The Kid would have been a martyr to many and what better way to avoid a huge spectacle than to bury him in haste?
@@danielscuiry2847 I think he was buried in haste because the wrong man was killed and he, not Billy, was in that grave.
@@larryfranklin4547 Well I side with historians. I’m not really into speculations or conspiracy theories because historians already know all that stuff. Some things really do happen the way story was told.
@@danielscuiry2847 And somethings don't really happen the way the stories get told down through the years. And historians really don't know the true story of what happen to Billy.
@@larryfranklin4547 But look at Deluvina's reaction!
I'm so disappointed I missed the live presentation, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the video! Thank you so much!
Just wanted to tell that I have always been a huge fan of your work!!! Love the stories, you certainly have a great way of taking me back in time! Have a good one and May God bless y'all, Bo.
Great program! Thank you so much, Bob.
Bravo! Always such great stories from Bob. Keep them coming please!
The more I've learned about "historically famous" firearms, the less faith I have that the vast majority could ever be positively identified to be genuine.
@Ian Lundquist facts
It's only in recent history that anyone has bothered to retrieve guns as evidence after a shooting and record the serial number. Also back then there were no ATF 4473 forms so nobody knew who bought or owned what guns.
Haha like Jesse James mom selling like 3654 pistols that supposedly belonged to him
@@DK-gy7ll I'm glad you told those Joe Biden loving gun banning clowns off.. FACTS 💯
@@DK-gy7ll I think some of the guns from the Northfield raid were actually found in evidence decades later. The Smith that was taken from Cole Younger for example
This story gave me shivers down my spine! So interesting and you're a great story teller! Thank you for this!
Outstanding Tales! Thank You for Sharing!
Thanks again Bob I really enjoy your channel and all the old west historical research that you do.
I don't want the gun that killed BTK, I want the gun BTK used to kill sheriff Brady and all the other scourge he eliminated from this realm...
That’s right, I want BTK gun. Imagine how much that is worth today.
I'm not sure its a good idea to use BTK as a short hand acronym for Billy the Kid, its more commonly and more infamously used as short hand for the formerly unnamed serial killer known by what he did to his victims, "Bound, Tortured, Killed".
@@Full_Otto_Bismarck Born To Kill.
Always good to see you Boze👍🏼
Thanks for telling the story. I used to see the old TV series with Clu Gallagher and Barry Sullivan.
Thanks so much for your very well done video. I'm just sad that it took me so long to find your channel. Take care
I just discovered the channel tonight, I really enjoy listening to you tell your stories. I love the history of the old west Lawman and Outlaws. When I was very young I would hang out with my uncle and watch Sunday westerns. The greatest of times.
I absolutely love your KZhead channel I so enjoy learning about history! Thank you so much for uploading all these videos with all your facts and wonderful information. Peace love and happiness to you!
Thank you for sharing this story it was so interesting!
Thank you, Thank you, I so love these full stories !!!
Love all of these; I would love to visit Tombstone. I live in Scotland. Any tips from past travellers on how best to do this?
FACINATING REALLY ENJOYED HOW YOU PUT THE STORY OVER THANK YOU
Knowing that Pat Garrett was the only one who said he shot BTK and buried him before anybody saw The body of BTK, I have my doubts thar Pat Garrett even killed BTK. Other than Pat Garrett's statement what real hard evidence is there that proves Garrett's story?
Exactly. I am a firm believer BTK didn't get killed by ole Pat Garret.
Plenty of people saw the dead body of billy. Now i don't know if it was billy barlow or BTK but a billy did get shot that night. He was shot in the face with a shotgun not a hand pistol
Hi I'm new here fantastic stuff, I'm in the UK and a huge wild west fan..
First and foremost, is the gun authentic? Hard to believe that anyone back in the day would have the presence of mind to get hold of the gun, verified it and kept it all these decades. Very hard to believe !
The gun's grips have Billy's name and ss# engraved into them.
@@wizardofahhhs759 That's some funny sh*t there. At least 80% of those who see that will believe it to be a fact. Folks online aren't too bright.
@@wizardofahhhs759 FAKENEWS
@@wizardofahhhs759 LOL !
Guns have always had serial numbers. Not too hard to track who owned it.
You are a terrific aurator , I have listened to several of your videos and enjoyed them all.
Thanks for the exciting story and review. Many greetings from Germany :)
Thanks for the stories, I've always been interested in the old west.
Nice one for sure buddy always love history back in them days god bless you and your family mark from Tennessee 👍👍
I think you made a very compelling case. I don't have enough scratch to start my own magazine! (Loved the ending sentence to this video)!
Brilliant! I love this! Thank YOU!
If the gun that killed Billy the Kid, was worth 6 million, then how much would a gun that actually belonged the The Kid be worth?!?!?
Possession does not necessarily drive value tho. It’s the ability to prove that the item was used in a significant, historical event, not necessarily just being owned by a person of significant, historical events, If that makes sense at all. While a pistol that was owned and carried by Billy would be worth considerably more than the same pistol used by a farmer to shoot snakes, but now take that pistol and use it to commit that historically significant event like shooting a President of the US , or committing a major bank robbery that netted the robber a record amount of gold at the time and killed a couple big name sheriff’s on the way out then that gun will be worth far more than the same gun, carried by the same man, but does not have the same historical significance because it stayed in the holster it’s whole life but the biggest issue here is proving it! It’s extremely difficult to prove that that was the exact gun used for the offense. Still a nice artifact and gun without proof, but not worth the same as a highly documented, proven artifact with supporting documentation back to the Occurrence or beyond. All antiques and collectibles have a multi-tier value structure and it just really depends on each item, and whether documentation is available or can be found, etc, etc, etc. it’s not an easy game at all to establish value. And the hardest part at all is when two people in a room want it more than all the others and they get into a bidding war with the other individual and the price goes soaring Hope this makes it clear as mud for ya, it’s really not a cut and dry, easy way to establish value on some of the things other than try and get it in a room of extremely wealthy historical nuts who have the disposable income to invest in such a piece and then you can potentially profit much more
@@1982MCI Blah blah blah. The gun is real. You are fake.
@@jaysantos536 what a smart arse
Fabulous effort. Remarkable history.
Most interesting. Thank you!
This is a amazing story Bob. Do you think that picture that Randy in Fresno found is real? Thanks for Sharing 🇺🇲
Good video Bob...ty...question tho...at 5:24 in your video you show a photo of several men and Pres. Teddy Roosevelt...on the far left there appears to be a Marine in dress blues of that period...who is that Marine and his rank? Also center in the photo is another person in what could be a Marine or U S Army field uniform wearing the Campaign cover reshaped as most men did with that headgear of that era...who is that man and his rank and branch of service? Thanks Bob! Mike USMC
that last line was gold "well if you don't like, then start your own magazine." 🤣
Love the Wild West...Love listening to you...
“I hope I made my case. If you don’t like it, then start your own magazine.“ LMAO! 😂🤣😂🤣
I'm curious about the make and model and caliber of this revolver . Anyway this is interesting and entertaining . Thanks for the putting this story together and connecting the dots .
Thanks 👍 for sharing this with 👍 us.
A fascinating story told by a great storyteller.
Bob, wasn't there a lost bullet found years later imbedded the underside of a washstand in Pete's bedroom? Isn't that bullet in a museum somewhere? Having an expert compare tooling marks between the gun and that bullet would be interesting.
7:50 Now that's a heck of a way of going to meet your maker🤣
Another great story, thanks
These firearms have highly questionable provenance, just like guns supposedly owned by Jesse James. In order for there to be no doubt whatsoever, a factory letter would have to exist. Tom Horn for instance, ordered his guns from the Winchester Custom shop, as the factory can confirm.
I've lettered several Colts and the info ifrom their ledgers is often incomplete. Besides.Garrett didn't order this from Hartford it was consficated.
It would be great to know that someone who cares for these things got it (if that's who really got it) it's also nice to know that a true west collector has it and he's an American and it didn't leave the country
Not yet anyway ... 😒
Kris Kristofferson played billy the kid
in 1973
Why does it matter that he's American?
@@ReservoirPunk because it is a part of AMERICAN history or are you really that ignorant? For fucks sakes
I have an 18 month old son and I would love to add your stories to his future hom school history lessons. Do you have a dvd series I can purchase and store away for him?
Use these videos as a lesson. It would have been an improvement to the way I was taught a boring, dry history from a boring, dry teacher.
@@dennydeckerful I'm amazed anyone could make history boring!
Great video
The title of this article should be: The gun that Pat Garrett used to kill Billy The Kid……..Not the gun that killed Billy The Kid. We as Patriots of our country should be very careful how we word a story. It’s not that the gun killed, it’s the person who used used the gun that did the killing. Think about it.
it's not even the gun - it may have been Garrett's but Par used a sawed of shotgun on Billy - kzhead.info/sun/lM2Dd7xlln6oeIk/bejne.html
That title should be "the gun used to kill Billy the Kid" The weapon, being an INANIMATE object cannot just grow legs and go kill something or someone.
Great. Story. Nicely presented……. But. …. A photo of the gun. Would have been nice ….
You're the best,Bob
When i was a little man about 1968 5th grade. my mom's boss was a "Bob Garrett" said he was a grandson of Pat Garrett and he showed me a "pair" of nickel Colts that he said had shot Billy the Kid. When i was 20 I met a friends Grand mother from west Texas, and she told me that Billy was shot by a Mexican farmer when cutting some raw meat off a hanging steer. Shot in the moonlight the farmer did not know who he "wounded" Billy until he got close. Word that Billy was shot got to Garrett and he rode 2 horses near to death 90 miles to claim the body. But when he got there another body of a bandit had been buried. Billy was nursed by his soon to be wife and then traveled to Arizona and ranched in a valley north east of Tombstone. The story has been shortened by me. The lady was so credible and serious that i believe her, that Garrett did not shoot Billy and he lived on. I know it's just a story from a 90 year west Texas old pioneer, for what it is worth.
It’s always stories like this that make searching for some lost something or other even more fascinating ❤️
I have heard something similar to this.A guy who contacts spirits with a sort of sound box,also said he made contact with Billy's spirit & that of one of his friends,forget who.Billy is supposed to have said he didn't die at the hands of Pat Garrett.But lived to old age.I cannot recall any more.Any thoughts?
Thank you
I might be able to "start my own magazine" but, it wouldn't be as good as your's!!!
14:59 my screen froze here and it dawned on me how much you resemble the kid lol.
Hey is this Wayne Brazel any part of family in Roswell ufo story with Mac Brazel ????
Been to Fort Sumner and stopped at the welcoming center . Say a grass fire patch on the way in was then told that the fire was the biggest thing to happen since WWII . Wonderful and friendly people thou . Enjoyed the head stone for Billy the kid was in a cell to protect it from again being stolen .
Photo of Billy the kid that sold for $2 million. Is not the only photo of Billy the kid. There are several photos out of of Billy the kid. And one just recently sold for $6 million a completely different picture.
Hi from Australia I was in the USA in Jan 2020, In Toomstone a museum has BTK's trigger finger, Later in our trip, we ended up driving through fort summer and we saw Billys grave, There is also a museum there but it was closed when we got there
They have BTK finger? Is it in a jar?
Thank you , very ,very interesting ! Much appreciated .
Well that was fun! Thank you, sir
I missed this, damn!
At 11:05 you show newspaper page reporting “Widow gets Pistol”. Below that is a title”Fined for Baseball Riot”. Wonder what THAT was all about!
funny you do this but what about your other video of bushy Bill roberts so which is it
Ol’ Bill lol I happen to work at a plant that he owns named Oxbow. I had no idea he was into the old west until recently when I found out he bought the photograph for 11M.
That is William Koch.
What are your thoughts on the 1997 interview with Frank (Chano) Silva? Who states his great grandfather, a friend of Billy's, was in the house the night Billy was shot. He goes into pretty good detail and states that Pat Garrett shot Billy with a sawed off shotgun while laying under a cot in the hallway. As Billy walked up on the porch and stood in front of the screen door, Pat unloaded the shotgun on him and Billy fell face down on the front porch. Which also disputes the whole bedroom story. This to me seems more plausible? kzhead.info/sun/lM2Dd7xlln6oeIk/bejne.html
Nothing said here convinced me that this indeed was the pistol. Heck, it could have been switched 100 times just while hanging over the bar.
One of the Koch Brothers!!Wow! Bought that photo!
I'm curious as to with Paulita Maxwell having a son 6 months after marriage that was the spitting image of Billy has any family members ever expressed the possibility of testing DNA?
I thought her name was Paulina,guess it wasn't so.
The child was born a few years after.. But look up Chano Silva interview.. It’s amazing!
GREAT QUESTION!
👍👍👍👍👍 great video bob, straight to the facts not a 2hr video where blah,blah,blah and nothing is said. Keep up the good work.
Ah no. I bought the weapon at a second hand store back in 1966. It cost me forty dollars.
and you probably bought the real one!!
This is absolutely fascinating!! Had no idea about the history of this gun. I wonder what Billy would think about all this.
Not much …. He’s dead .
@@robertsr.249 I bet he wishes he got a shot off first !
In The Movie Young Guns ✌️, It Was Josiah " Doc" Skurlock That Was Killed At Stinking Springs
Fun fact: Doc and Pat Garrett are both from Alabama. They lived one County apart. Doc was from Tallapoosa County(my home) Garrett was from Chambers county
And I'd love to know if the stone house is still there .
Keifer wanted to be released for another project,so said he wanted his character killed off.In real life he retired into obscurity.
Was Wayne Brazel any relation to Max Brazel of the 1947 Roswell, NM UFO incident?
l work for one of the owners of gun back in 1976 who bought gun from Jarvis Garrett in Austin Texas.
Looking at the whole story, the lawmen were the real criminals.
just like today
Not convinced that the kid was shot by the low down Pat Garret
Punk Garret
Ditto.
Your not the only doubter
Is that Brazel related to the one in the Roswell incident?
yes
"and second of all, who'd have the ponies to buy that".....FYI there are more people in this country that can absolutely squander 6 million dollars than you (or I) can count.
My dad told me that his father worked at a sawmill as a young man. At the sawmill was an old timer that sharpened the saw blades. My Grandpa told my dad that the old timer was asked by a woman liked to hang around the mill workers if he could engrave a Colt. The old timer said he would have to know what she wanted engraved before he could say if he could do it or not. She told him she wanted only “14 July 1881”. She told him that was the last time it was fired and that it had been used by a man she knew that killed Billy. He gave her the gun to distance himself from it. The old timer engraved it using equipment from the sawmill that was used to engrave the dates the blades were received. He asked her what she was going to do with the gun and she said she was going to sell it on…eBay. True story….
As was the norm for time outlaws bodys were often put on display in town.Billys body was never put on display.Garrett and Billy were pals .It was a secret that Garrett took with him to his grave and the government would have you believe.Garrett never killed Billy they were pals.
I have the only other gun, that didn't kill Billy the Kid, here at my house.
Bill Koch. He loves the old west. Had a town moved to Gunnison I believe.
Someone has more dollars than sense…
I'm sorry but it is a documented fact Garrett did not kill the kid.Its always going to be disputed anyway but its documented that Garrett's deputy after bringing the body in and uncovering it he told Garrett "that's not him" and the person killed had a thick beard which Billy wasnt able to grow.Garrett said its him(of course) and then the body was buried right away which no one did back then when someone infamous was killed..They always took photos and at the least displayed the body for bragging rights which Garrett would have definitely done had he in fact killed Billy the kid.He knew he killed the wrong person which then made it outright murder so the body was buried right away without letting anyone else see it.Case closed!
Hahaha...I'm from/live in Wichita, Kansas...and he REALLY looks familiar.🤠😄👍
The BTKid gang had great taste in hardware. This brand new Billy Wilson Colt with Winchester carbine in the same caliber, and Charlie Bowdre’s as seen in that blood stained photo with his wife. His being a ‘76 Winchester carbine and also a long barreled Colt.
What a wasted spent of 6 million dollars. First to believe Pat Garrett's account. Pat made alot money off of that lie.
awesome story teller
Bill Koch bought the gun. He use to own the coal mine where I was an electrician. Bill also owns from what I heard all of John Wayne's hats!!! Built an old west town out side of Paonia, Colorado.
Garrett was not the one who shot Billy. He was shot by one of the two vaqueros that came through the back door through the kitchen. Garrett was still waiting on the west side porch. Billy was shot in the parlor, after he exited the bedroom doorway, which was covered by s blanket... This was what his girlfriend relayed as what actually happened, to all of those of his friends, who were the pall bearers at his burial the next day .... However, knowing that Billy was extremely popular amongst the locals, and that his deputy would be hunted down.... AND that the reward money of 500 dollars would be split between his Mexican deputies ... Garrett took credit ..... I prefer the eye witness account. It makes much more sense than the Legend of Garrett, and movie/book version.
give evidence or you are a liar
No death photos of young William always perplexed me.
Love history but sad the gun that killed him sold for that much money I feel bad the kid was turned in to an outlaw by the corrupt railroad and his family love guns but would never pay that for a murder weapon
thats nothing i have a cap gun that dates back to sears and rohbuck the 12th
I believe they got Billy Barlow NOT Billy The Kid bc Pat didn’t let anyone see the body!
How do you know Garrett didn't con Howard. And that's not really the original pistol used on Billy.
Brushy Biill of Hico Texas Altopsy proved he really was Billy The kid ! He had every identical wound . That Billy had ! Measured his facial features . Dental Work ,! Shoe size ,.high , and Arm length . Leg length, ! His gun and holster and hair type blood type ! He wasn't wanted in any other state . But New Mexico ,! He lived in White Oaks Mexico ! For quite a while ! And had a girl friend Their ! Her family rented a room to Billy . They protected him ! He showed at the Mercantile their .Their were records on his clothing sizes ! ! Ok n Hico their are dental records when he became a Texas Ranger ! Absesed tooth . Made him very sick ! So he got iit pulled out ! You-all just do some research on Billy in Texas Rangers . Under the he name ,! Brushy Bill , and Jessie James . Under the name . Bob Dalton ! True facts never fail !
You can date a firearm by its serial number. While not conclusive you can at least verify its timeframe. There are more tests archaeologists use to determine where an artifact has been. So... 🤷♂️
What about the guy that came out of the desert claiming to be Billy?
It seems that interviews with Paulina Maxwell would have confirmed the Kid's killing at Fort Sumter. Apparently she did not say anything that would show otherwise.