Billy The Kid's Historical Coalition

10/09/2026

Preserving history is about more than placing markers, erecting headstones, and documenting historical sites. It also means publishing historically accurate information and getting it into the hands of readers everywhere.

One of our critics accused our latest book, Billy the Kid: The Days That Make a Legend, of being “just another echo chamber book.” That couldn’t be further from the truth. Here at The Coalition, if it doesn’t offer new information, we simply don’t publish it.

We’re proud to have brought you four published works exploring the life and legend of Billy the Kid, each offering new insights and documentation you’ve most likely never seen before. In addition to the four publications shown below, we’ve also released a bestselling children’s book that helps introduce a younger generation to the history we love. We’re currently working on the seventh volume of our annual publication, which is quickly becoming one of the leading historical journals in the field.

Please visit Amazon, find something that interests you or that you don’t already own, and help support our cause. Every dollar earned through our publications—100% of the proceeds—goes directly toward the continued preservation of Billy the Kid’s history.

10/03/2026

It’s finally available!

Amazon link provided on the comments.

Billy the Kid: The Days That Made a Legend presents the story of Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War as it unfolded, one event at a time.

Beginning decades before the outbreak of the Lincoln County War, this extensively researched chronology follows the people, places, rivalries, and events that ultimately converged in Lincoln County, New Mexico. It traces Billy the Kid from his early years as Henry McCarty and Henry Antrim through his arrival in New Mexico, his association with John Henry Tunstall and the Lincoln County Regulators, the violence of 1878, his pursuit by Pat Garrett, his dramatic escape from the Lincoln jail, and his death and burial at Fort Sumner in July 1881.

Beyond the central chronology, the book examines the major events of the Lincoln County War, the factions and individuals who participated in it, the later lives of its survivors, the sheriffs of Lincoln County, and the history of Billy the Kid’s grave.

Designed as both an accessible history and a reference work, The Days That Made a Legend brings together a remarkable collection of dates, events, people, and historical details for readers who want to understand not only Billy the Kid, but the world that created his legend.

10/01/2026

Some people post about history. We document it, preserve it, and publish it.

We don’t just talk about history. We leave something behind.

Billy the Kid: The Days That Made a Legend is the product of real research, real work, and a real commitment to getting history right. No recycled myths. No loud opinions. No Facebook forensics.

Just the record, the research, and the story laid out the way it actually happened.

This is what real history work looks like.

09/25/2026

THIS DAY IN BILLY THE KID HISTORY

September 25, 1875 — A young Henry McCarty makes the first of what would become several famous escapes from custody.

After being arrested in Silver City, New Mexico, for his involvement in the theft of clothing from a Chinese laundry, Henry was confined in the local jail. On September 25, the undersized teenager managed to climb up the jail’s chimney, squeeze his way out, and disappear.

Following his escape, Henry reportedly made his way toward Clifton, Arizona Territory, where he sought out his stepfather, William Antrim. According to later accounts, Antrim scolded the boy and refused to take him in.

Still only fifteen years old and having lost his mother the previous year, Henry was now largely on his own.

Picture below is the location where the jail once stood.

09/18/2026

Some people talk about history. We actually do the work.

We research history. We’re going to get things wrong sometimes.Ch...

09/17/2026

Missed Chasing Billy LIVE?

Well, hell. Fix it.

The latest episode of Chasing Billy is up on YouTube now. We dig into the murders at Blackwater Draw, the evidence, the theories, the bad history, and the parts of the story that make you stop and say, “Wait… what the hell?”

We also talk Coalition updates, monument news, upcoming projects, and new book releases.

If you already watched it, good. You have excellent taste.

If you haven’t, stop what you’re doing and go watch it.

👉 Search Chasing Billy on YouTube and check out Blackwater Draw.

09/14/2026

Who’s going to join us?

What really happened at Blackwater Draw?Join us LIVE on Chasing B...

09/11/2026

Well, it’s almost here!

Join us next Tuesday, September 15, at 7:00 p.m. Central Time for the return of Chasing Billy Live!

We’ll get you caught up on all the latest Coalition news and projects, along with Billy the Kid news from around the community. We’ll also begin a multipart series examining the murders at Blackwater Draw—and if you stay with us, I promise you’re going to see history rewritten.

Bring your favorite wh***ey, pull up a chair, and have your questions ready. We can’t wait to see you all for the next live episode!

09/04/2026

We’re excited to announce that one of the Coalition’s publications, I Wasn’t Billy the Kid by Don Cline, is now available for purchase at the Fort Sumner Chamber of Commerce, located directly beside Billy the Kid’s grave!

You can also order a copy through Amazon using the link provided in the comments.

Thank you for your continued support of the Coalition and our mission to preserve and promote history!

09/03/2026

The Bosque Grande

Long before John Chisum established his famous South Spring Ranch, his original New Mexico headquarters stood at Bosque Grande, a fertile bend along the Pecos River about twenty eight miles north of present day Roswell. Chisum began developing the property during the late 1860s, using its buildings and corrals as a base for his rapidly expanding Jinglebob cattle empire. After he moved his headquarters farther south, the old ranch remained an important stopping place along the Pecos. Billy the Kid and the Regulators passed through Bosque Grande during and after the Lincoln County War, including in August 1878, when they reached the ranch while fleeing Lincoln County.

By 1880, the old Chisum property had become known as Dan Dedrick’s ranch. The family name was sometimes recorded as Dietrich, which accounts for the different spellings found in historical records. Charles Siringo remembered the ranch as a regular gathering place for Billy’s associates, but the strongest evidence comes from Pat Garrett himself. Garrett wrote that his posse surrounded “Dedrick’s ranch, at Bosque Grande” at daybreak on November 26, 1880, hoping to capture Billy and his companions. Billy was not there, but Garrett did arrest escaped Las Vegas prisoners John Joshua “J. J.” Webb and George Davis.

Picture below is historian Maurice Fulton visiting the site in the 1920s. Both images are courtesy of the historical Society of southeastern New Mexico in Roswell. 

Be careful where you get your history from 😉