July 19, 2023

Pat Garrett | Origin Story (Part 1)

Pat Garrett | Origin Story (Part 1)

On the night of July 14th, 1881, Sheriff Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid. In doing so he not only helped create a legend, but he also ensured that his legacy would forever be intertwined with that of the notorious outlaw. And let’s be honest – it...

On the night of July 14th, 1881, Sheriff Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid. In doing so he not only helped create a legend, but he also ensured that his legacy would forever be intertwined with that of the notorious outlaw.

And let’s be honest – it ain’t that great of a legacy.

Many consider Garrett to be a coward, at best; a no-good backstabbing Old West Judas who betrayed his own friend for a handful of silver. What’s more, Pat is also labeled as a rank liar and an ego maniac. A glory seeker would turn on his own mother if that meant earning a little dough and building up his own reputation. 

And, over 26 years after he gunned down The Kid, Pat himself would be shot and killed under similar circumstances. A murder that to this day remains unsolved.

Who killed Pat Garrett? How accurate is the narrative surrounding the former Sheriff of Lincoln County? Is all the hate deserved?

And who was Garrett anyway? What was his life like before he met the Kid? And what became of Pat in the decades following that fateful night at Fort Sumner?

 

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Book Recommendations! https://www.amazon.com/shop/wildwestextravaganza/list/YEHGNY7KFAU7?ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d

 

Into History - https://intohistory.supercast.com/

 

Pat Garrett: The Story of a Western Lawman by Leon Metz - https://www.amazon.com/dp/0806118385?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=0806118385&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin

 

To Hell on a Fast Horse by Mark Lee Gardner - https://www.amazon.com/dp/006136827X?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=006136827X&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin

 

Billy the Kid: A Short and Violent Life by Robert Utley - https://www.amazon.com/dp/0803295588?linkCode=ssc&tag=onamzjoshta02-20&creativeASIN=0803295588&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.YEHGNY7KFAU7&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin

 

Were Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid Friends? https://wildwestjosh.substack.com/p/were-pat-garrett-and-billy-the-kid

 

The First Battle of Adobe Walls - https://www.wildwestextra.com/the-first-battle-of-adobe-walls/

 

Billy the Kid series part 1 - https://www.wildwestextra.com/billy-the-kid-orphan/