39 Facts About Pat Garrett

Patrick Floyd Jarvis Garrett was an American Old West lawman, bartender and customs agent known for killing Billy the Kid.

Pat Garrett was the sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico, as well as Dona Ana County, New Mexico.

Patrick Floyd Jarvis Garrett was born on June 5,1850, in Chambers County, Alabama.

Pat Garrett was the second of five children born to John Lumpkin Garrett and his wife Elizabeth Ann Jarvis.

When Pat Garrett was three years old his father purchased the John Greer plantation in Claiborne Parish, Louisiana.

The 18-year-old Pat Garrett headed west from Louisiana on January 25,1869.

Pat Garrett surrendered to the authorities at Fort Griffin, Texas, but they declined to prosecute.

When Pat Garrett arrived at Fort Sumner, New Mexico, he found work as a bartender, then as a cowboy for Pedro Menard "Pete" Maxwell.

Between 1881 and 1905 Apolinaria Garrett gave birth to eight children: Ida, Dudley, Elizabeth, Annie, Patrick, Pauline, Oscar, and Jarvis.

On November 2,1880, Pat Garrett was elected sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico, having defeated the incumbent, Sheriff George Kimball, by a vote of 320 to 179.

Pat Garrett obtained a deputy US Marshal's commission, which allowed him to pursue the Kid across state lines.

Pat Garrett turned Webb and Davis over to the sheriff of San Miguel County a few days later, and moved on to the settlement of Puerto de Luna.

Three days later, Pat Garrett's posse cornered Billy and his companions at a spot called Stinking Springs.

On July 14,1881, Pat Garrett visited Fort Sumner to question a friend of the Kid's about his whereabouts and learned he was staying with a mutual friend, Pedro Menard "Pete" Maxwell.

The Kid was asleep in another part of the house, but woke up in the middle of the night and entered Maxwell's bedroom, where Pat Garrett was standing in the shadows.

Pat Garrett coauthored The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid with Ash Upson, and for decades his book was deemed authoritative.

Pat Garrett did not seek re-election as sheriff of Lincoln County in 1882.

Pat Garrett moved to Texas, where he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the state senate.

Pat Garrett became a captain with the Texas Rangers for less than a month, then returned to Roswell, New Mexico.

Pat Garrett discovered a large reservoir of artesian water in the Roswell region and went into partnership with two men to organize the "Pecos Valley Irrigation and Investment Company" on July 18,1885.

Pat Garrett kept his irrigation schemes alive for several years, and on January 15,1887, he purchased a one-third interest in the "Texas Irrigation Ditch Company", but the partners got rid of him.

Pat Garrett might have lived out the remainder of his life in Uvalde, had it not been for a headline-making event back in New Mexico.

Pat Garrett had hoped to capture the fugitives while they were sleeping, but Lee and Gililland expected trouble and took their bedrolls up to the roof of the bunkhouse to avoid being taken by surprise.

One of Pat Garrett's deputies named Kearney heard footsteps on the roof, scaled a ladder, and was mortally wounded by the fugitives.

The lawmen and Jose Espalin, one of Pat Garrett's deputies, rode to the ranch, and on October 7,1899, Newman was killed in a gunfight.

Pat Garrett became one of President Roosevelt's three "White House Gunfighters".

Since Pat Garrett had not been a member of that regiment, Roosevelt's invitation was taken as a snub at those critics who wanted Pat Garrett replaced from his post.

Pat Garrett brought a guest of his own to the event named Tom Powers.

Pat Garrett's enemies obtained copies of the photos and sent them to Roosevelt, informing the president that instead of being the "cattleman" that Pat Garrett claimed, Powers was, in fact, the owner of a "notorious dive" in El Paso called the Coney Island Saloon.

Pat Garrett's ranch had been heavily mortgaged, and when he was unable to make payments, the county auctioned off all of Garrett's personal possessions to satisfy judgments against him.

Pat Garrett met with Curry, who promised him the position of superintendent of the territorial prison at Santa Fe, once he was inaugurated.

Pat Garrett was further angered when he learned that Archie Prentice "Print" Rhode was Brazel's partner in the huge goat herd.

At this point James B Miller met with Garrett to try to solve the problem.

Pat Garrett was shot and killed, but exactly by whom remains the subject of controversy.

Brazel's trial for Pat Garrett's murder concluded on May 4,1909.

In 1940 his son, Jarvis Pat Garrett, marked the spot with a monument consisting of concrete laid around a stone with a cross carved in it.

An organization called Friends of Pat Garrett has been formed to ensure that the city preserves the site and marker.

At six feet five inches, Pat Garrett's body was too tall for any finished coffins available, so a special one had to be shipped in from El Paso.

Pat Garrett has been a character in many films and television shows, and has been portrayed by:.