New Mexico Historical Review Volume 61 Number 2 Article 2 4-1-1986 Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War Robert M. Utley Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/nmhr Recommended Citation Utley, Robert M.. "Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War." New Mexico Historical Review 61, 2 (1986). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/nmhr/vol61/iss2/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in New Mexico Historical Review by an authorized editor of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War ROBERT M. UTLEY As Alexander McSween died on the back doorstep of his blazing home, Billy the Kid made good his escape. The fire had eaten from room to room, finally leaving the defenders with the choice of burning, surren dering, or making a break for it. From the kitchen door they burst into the night, lit by the flames of the burning house The posse's fire drove part of them back, McSween included. But, dodging bullets, the Kid and several companions raced across the opening between the Mc Sween house and the Tunstall store, veered to the north, and lost them selves in the trees along the Rfo Bonito. Ten minutes later, on this night of July 19, 1878, a burst of gunfire killed Alexander McSween. 1 Billy the Kid emerged from the flaming wreckage of McSween's home as a minor celebrity, known throughout New Mexico Territory as Robert M.