Old photographs of Billy the Kid can fetch a fortune, and when Randy Guijarro stumbled upon a dusty tintype photo at a flea market in California for just $2, he had no idea he might be holding a piece of history. The faded image, which he later suspected featured the infamous outlaw, created a media sensation in 2015.
Billy the Kid, one of the Wild West’s most legendary figures, continues to captivate imaginations. His life and exploits are the subject of books, documentaries, and even auctions of rare memorabilia. Genuine photos of the outlaw are extremely scarce, with only a few known to exist. The most famous, known as the Dedrick tintype, was taken in the late 1870s and shows Billy in typical frontier attire. This tintype sold for $2.3 million in 2011, cementing the value of authentic images of the outlaw.
Guijarro’s tintype, however, sparked intense debate. The photo depicted a group playing croquet, and one of the figures resembled a young man in a striped sweater, whom Guijarro believed was Billy the Kid. He and his wife spent years researching and gathering evidence to prove its authenticity. After extensive analysis, the San Francisco auction house Kagin’s authenticated the image, claiming it depicted Billy the Kid and members of his gang, the Regulators, in the summer of 1878. The photo was insured for $5 million, and Kagin’s asserted it was a once-in-a-lifetime discovery.
Despite the excitement, skepticism emerged. Critics, including experts like historian Robert Utley, dismissed the photo’s authenticity, labeling it another in a long line of alleged Billy the Kid images. John Boessenecker, a California outlaw historian, also doubted the photo, citing the lack of solid provenance—a crucial factor in verifying historical images. Without a clear line of ownership, as with the Dedrick tintype, proving the photo’s authenticity was more challenging.
Even though Guijarro’s photo garnered widespread attention, it remains unsold, casting further doubt on its authenticity. Many experts, like auctioneer Brian Lebel, question the validity of the photo and the documentary that highlighted it, Billy the Kid: New Evidence, calling it “reality television” rather than legitimate historical research.
The croquet photo remains an intriguing piece of Americana, but until it finds a buyer or more concrete evidence surfaces, its authenticity will remain a subject of debate. While the story captured public interest, it’s a reminder that not every artifact of history can be authenticated with certainty, no matter how much it might resemble a legendary figure like Billy the Kid.