Joe Antrim; Gambler, Drifter & Brother Of Billy The Kid ► Pals of Billy the Kid

Josie Antrim

by J. Younger

Events and Genealogy
Born: Joseph
Birthdate: 1863
Birthplace: New York (likely)
Marriage: Jennie Stone on 12/19/1891 at Pueblo Colorado (likely)
Children: Claudie Stone/Antrim (possibly a step son) (likely)
Death: November 25, 1930
Cause of Death: Apoplexy
Burial:

Joseph McCarty is widely believed to be the brother or half-brother of William Henry McCarthy, later known as Billy the Kid. According to all available census records, Joe was born in New York in 1863.

In 1870, Catherine and her sons appeared in historical record as the only woman to sign the petition that helped incorporate Wichita, Kansas. Ms. McCarty owned her own property and opened a successful laundry service, as well as bought and sold empty lots in town. However, her success was cut short when she was diagnosed with tuberculosis and advised to seek a warmer and drier climate. Catherine married William Antrim on March 1st, 1873, in Santa Fe, before moving to Silver City. Unfortunately, her illness took a turn for the worse, and Catherine passed away on September 16, 1874.

Antrim — The Wichita Weekly Beacon
Wichita, Kansas •
Wed, Oct 7, 1874
Page 5

Her sons by either blood or adoption, Joe and Billy moved in with the Truesdell family, before eventually leaving on their own. Young Billy later got into trouble for stealing laundry in Silver City while staying at The Brown residence, according to an interview with Chauncey Truesdell about the Antrim family.

Henry was staying at Mrs. Brown's. When Mrs. Brown saw the clothes that Henry took home, she told Mr. Harvey Whitehill, the sheriff. Everyone in the camp knew the Chinaman had been robbed. Ike Givens was Justice of the Peace and he had Henry locked up. I remember the jail. It was in the north end of town. It was made of adobe. It was built of planks about 2 x 10 laid sideways. Henry was small for his age and kind of skinny. After dark he wormed his way through the fireplace chimney and came to our place. Mother fixed it up for him to go to the lumber camp at Bear Mountain. Mrs. Dyer was cooking for Ed Moulton at the sawmill at Bear Mountain. She took Joe to take care of [him] for a while, too. It was not long before Henry was back. He rapped on our window one night. My mother let him in and he slept with us all night. She washed and ironed some clothes for him and put him on the early stage for Globe. After that, Joe and I were at the Nicholi ranch one evening. We were trying to milk a cow. She was pretty wild and we had her head tied to a fence and tried to keep her quiet enough to milk. I was doing the milking when three men on horses came up. They were right on top of us before we saw them. They had red bands tied around their hats. That is the way the Indians had shown they were peaceful. Joe reached for a rifle but one of the fellows called him by name and it was Henry. They stayed at the ranch all night and the next morning took out for Globe. The next we heard of Henry, the Globe stage driver I think it was, told us he had got in trouble in Globe---accused of killing a man in an argument over a poker game. I think that is the first time I heard him called by the name of Bonney." Joe went to Globe afterwards too. He used to run a game in the Centennial Saloon. Tommy Ashton ran the saloon. My brother met Joe in Globe a good many years later. He was a gambler. $20 was a lot of money in those days but in many big games, they used $20 gold pieces for chips. Everybody carried a good luck piece.”

Chauncey Truesdell

As the individuals matured, they led separate lives in distinct regions. Billy endured a challenging existence in New Mexico and subsequently found himself incarcerated on death row at Lincoln New Mexico. Fortunately, he managed to successfully escape. According to “The West of Billy the Kid” by Fred Nolan, page 271 reveals that William Antrim, The Kid’s stepfather, attempted to visit him on horseback before his execution but faced a delay on the road. Unfortunately, he was unable to reach him until the following day. One can only speculate about the potential conversation between them, or whether Joe Antrim was present as well.
According to legend, three months later Billy the Kid, was shot and killed in a dark room at the hand of Sheriff Pat Garrett. The news was spread nationwide and in a twist of events made Garrett look bad and cowardly. To counter the attack, Garrett wanted to write his own book about the event and events leading up to that day and set out to Albuquerque to meet with Joe Antrim.

In August of 1882, Pat Garrett confidently encountered Joseph “Josie” Antrim at the Armijo Hotel in Albuquerque.

Antrim, the brother of notorious outlaw Billy the Kid, was rumored to be seeking revenge for his brother’s death. However, the meeting between the two men proceeded confidently and cordially. They spoke for some time before parting amicably. The content of their conversation was later revealed to be a confident discussion about Billy the Kid and his death at the hands of Garrett. Joseph Antrim did not wish to hold a grudge.

On December 19, 1891, with all joy and love, Joseph and Jennie Stone exchanged their vows and officially became husband and wife in a beautiful ceremony that took place in Pueblo, Colorado.

In the late 1880s, Jennie Stone Antrim gave birth to a son named Claudie Stone/Antrim. Genealogical evidence strongly suggests that Joe Antrim was the boy’s stepfather, although it could be possible he was the father, more research is needed to conclude this.
The marriage between Jennie and Joe proved short lived and ultimately dissolved. Yet amid the separation, Joe displayed a striking degree of paternal devotion. When he learned that Claudie’s health and education were being neglected, he stepped in decisively. He brought the child to Denver and enrolled in a reputable private school…an act that reveals a more caring and responsible side of Joe than his later brushes with misfortune might suggest.
This chapter of quiet paternal intervention briefly captured public notice. In April 1894, the Pueblo Chieftain reported on Antrim’s actions, highlighting both the family turmoil and Joe’s determination to secure a better future for his stepson.

On May 8, 1893, Joe Antrim’s name surfaced in Denver newspapers when he registered to vote, listing his residence as 1517 Arapahoe Street. During the same period, city directories consistently placed a “Claudie” (or L. Claude Antrim) living in close proximity to Joe’s known addresses. One entry identifies L. Claude Antrim as the circulation manager for a local publishing house, residing at the respectable address of 621 Colfax Avenue. Was this the same Claudie? Perhaps a relative, guardian, or coincidental namesake? The proximity raises intriguing questions…
In 1894, Joe’s fortunes took a dramatic turn. While celebrating with companions at a private after party, he and his friends fell victim to a masked armed robbery. The intruders swiftly relieved the revelers of their valuables, an episode that hints at both the rough edges of Denver nightlife and Joe’s entanglement in it.
Years later, in October 1903, Joe Antrim again appeared in police records. He was among a group arrested during a citywide gambling crackdown, another brush with the law that underscores a pattern of living on society’s margins.
Joseph Antrim died on November 25, 1930. According to contemporary accounts, his body may have been delivered to the Colorado Medical School for anatomical dissection, a common fate for unclaimed remains at the time. A week long newspaper advertisement sought claimants for Antrim’s unclaimed body, yet none came forward. The remains were presumably consigned to an unmarked grave or cremated.
Or were they?
A death certificate was not issued until 1962, more than three decades after his passing. This raises tantalizing questions about the final disposition of his remains. The certificate lists a burial (or cremation) date of November 29, 1932, two years after his death. Had his cremated ashes lingered in storage for decades? Or does the 1962 filing reflect a long delayed formal burial? To this day, the truth remains shrouded in uncertainty, leaving one final mystery in the life of a man whose story slips quietly between the cracks of history.