Finding Billy the Kid Tintypes

[Steve Coletti]

I am just like everyone else, I would love to find an original image of Billy the Kid. I have purchased many tintypes in the past 40 years at estate sales , most for just a few dollars.. Last year I found one that had some similitary to Billy.. I know it's just wishful thinking. What do you think ?

[Wolfgang]

Wishful thinking is a wonderful thing . . . ......     ;)

[Wolfgang]

I know Henry Atrium well . . an I understand that he still lives in Covington Ky. . . . . I saw him there and had coffee with him just last week. . . . . . . . .

[Wolfgang]

Wishful thinking . . . . . . . and dreaming . . .......    

[David Flores]

You might find a big argument from some of the members on this site, like I did.  I ended up deleting everything because I don't like to argue about stuff on the internet I am a friendly person and a professional. 

I wanted to start a collection of old photos at one time.  Some are worth a lot of money and could tell a lot about people in those days like, their age, name, place of orgin.  I once seen a lot of photos of Quakers in Whittier California that I wanted to donate them to the Whittier Historical Society because Quakers lived in the area, and made a great contribution to the community.  However, at $6.00 dollars each, the whole collection would of costed me over $600.00 dollars for the donation. (I still might make an offer) I just don't have the free money at the time.  Because I am always spending money on other research projects.  However here's a picture that started a fight about a whole lot of nothing because nobody met the reserve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But, If I wanted to be the funny guy, and start another fight, I would say this is the real photo of the kid...

 

[David Flores]

[David Flores]

With all due respect, and not to be comical, this guy probably killed more people in the field of battle, than Billy the Kid ever did.  I know where this photo came from.  It ain't nothing nice.

[Chris Lampe]

Be very careful in your quest for a new image of Billy the Kid. 

I believe there are other images of the Kid out there, how could there not be?  He lived on the frontier but they weren't completely isolated for civilization.  I figure these other tintypes are either in the possession of someone who has no idea who they depict or they may not even know they own them (packed away in a deceased relative's things) or there could be one or more that is known to be BTK but the owner, for whatever reason, is not coming forth. 

I know from experience it is VERY easy to find tintypes that look like Billy the Kid.  Even some of the "names" in the world of Billy the Kid have fallen under the spell of an old image they thought could be him. 

I would suggest learning more about tintypes in general.  For example, in my very limited experience, tintypes in cases and/or with a lot of gold decoration around the edge often are from a period much earlier than BTK's era.  Tintypes from the late 1870s and early 1880's tend to be in simple carboard slips.  I'm sure these aren't absolutes but the trends I've seen are in that direction. 

Good luck in your hunt and I hope you find something interesting.  My biggest concern in all of this is that we may never be able to definitively say a new image is actually Billy the Kid. 

[Chris Lampe]

Dave,

Care to share some information on that old image?  With all the gun control talk going on right now, I've gotten more interested in my "traditional" guns and that is pulling me back towards 19th century history.

[David Flores]

Oh boy... So you want to see the collection.  I like to share and I don't like to play cat and mouse when it comes to research it's not my thing.  Everything I know is by people sharing photos, stories, and miscellaneous.  I want to share this with everybody it's interesting.  And I hope you save the site, and pass it on.  This is something else.

 

SOURCE:

http://myloc.gov/exhibitions/civilwarphotographs/pages/objectlist.a...

 

This is from the Library of Congress Exhibition, The Liljenquist Family Collection of Civil War Photographs.  You have to check this site out.  It has over 380 pages of photos and sometimes it's a nice place to browse.  I study photography, and if you ever decide to search civil war photos, then your going to see reality in those days.  The Huntington Library in San Marino, California had a civil war exhibit last month or so, it may still be going on.  That kind of stuff will stick in my memory for life, because I focus on imagery.  So I can't see it.  So I found this sight on mostly head and shoulder shots.  Hope you enjoy.

 

[David Flores]

Oh, An unidentified Confederate cavalryman with a slant breech Sharp's carbine, two knives and two revolvers. I think.