Rummaging through discarded memorabilia at a junk shop is a pastime many indulge in. But few can match the luck of Randy Guijarro, who happened upon a precious artifact on one of his usual thrift store explorations. In 2010, Guijarro bought a trove of items at a Fresno, California, flea market for a mere $2, unaware of the fortune he held. It wasn’t until later that he realized that he had, in fact, purchased a photograph of significant historical value – a snap capturing the infamous outlaw Billy the Kid, once deemed “the most dangerous man in the West.”
A Glimpse Into The Past
As Guijarro examined the photograph closely, he found himself face to face with an unassuming figure who would turn out to be an emblem of America’s Wild West past. It was a casual scene from the 1870s, with a group of individuals enjoying a game of croquet outside a humble New Mexico building. But who could have imagined that the young man, with a characteristic hat perched on his head, was none other than the notorious “Kid“?
Guijarro’s interest was piqued, and he dedicated the next year of his life to validating the authenticity of the image. The young man, whose real name was Henry McCarty but widely known as Billy the Kid, was an infamous American gunslinger who allegedly killed eight men before his death at the age of 21.
Guijarro sought the assistance of experts and engaged in painstaking research. Through this process, he unveiled the photo’s backstory – this was the infamous outlaw with his gang, The Regulators. What was even more startling was that this was only the second confirmed photograph of the Kid, with the first sold for $2.3 million in 2011. This second, larger photo was insured for $5 million.
Leave a Reply