Of course he was known in and around Lincoln, he lived in the area. He also may have been admired, but again by people that knew him. Have you read Garrett's book. If so, this is for those that have not. The first 2/3 of the book are pure fiction. Ash Upson, the man that "co wrote" Pat's book even used his own B-Day for the Kid (Sept. 23) because they didn't know when it was. The book tells a lot of BS stories of the Kid's love of murder and basically says everyone killed in the Lincoln War was killed by the Kid himself. The reason Garrett wrote the book was to demonize the Kid, because a lot of people disliked Pat for killing a "kid" in the dark without a "fair chance" to defend himself. Garrett was seen as a coward. Garrett wrote the book to make himself look like a hero. But the book was a failure in sales. I didn't say no one outside of NM heard of the Kid, just that he was not the "hero" that some believe. We see news reports about criminals in other parts of the country every day, that doesn't mean they are famous. I think you are OVERestimating the fame of the fellow in his own time. He was well known around NM,west Texas and eastern Arizona, but not that much so elsewhere. As far as the Coe cousins, while they were great for a lot of useful information they also gave different accounts of some events. You must remember, they were not interviewed until the 1920s and 1930s. Over time, memories get more "exciting". They also get mixed up with other events. I have read an interview with WWII soldier where he mentions using an M2 carbine during the D-Day invasion. (M2s came out AFTER the war) George Coe is known for getting his events out of order too. Not saying they lied about anything, just that the interviews were 40 and 50 + years after the fact and they might have been struck with a little bit of nostalgia over a long gone friend. As for Burns, I would hope that people that rode with, hung around with, and were aquainted with the Kid would remember him. How many people have you forgotten that you used to know well? I remember my neighbors from when I was a kid (long ago) and I wasn't even close to them. That does not mean that they were memorable, just some people that I knew. I hope you do not think I am trying to fight with you, I have studied Billy the Kid for over 20 years and it is a subject that I hold dear for personal reasons. (nothing weird, just childhood memories) I enjoy the conversation.