Debunking Brushy: The Question of Scars

Brushy Bill on the left with the only authenticated photo of Billy on the right.

By Josh Slatten 

In this segment of "Debunking Brushy," let's address the question of whether he and Billy the Kid possessed the same scars. This is one of the more common arguments made by Brushy believers in support of his claim to be the Kid. Truth be told, it is impossible to know for sure. Billy the Kid's scars were never documented, assuming he had any. Prior to his death on July 14, 1881, Billy the Kid was only shot once that we are aware of. After the assassination of Sheriff William Brady, Billy the Kid and Jim French made a dash for the body that lay lifeless in the mud, with the intention of retrieving something. Their efforts were rewarded by a bullet from Billy Mathews' gun, which grazed the Kid before drilling a hole through Jim French's leg. With this knowledge, we can assume that Billy the Kid may have had a scar on one of his legs. However, this possible scar is nothing more than an assumption. Unfortunately, the coroner's report on the night Billy the Kid was killed did not document any marks or scars.

When William Morrison was investigating Brushy Bill's claim to be Billy the Kid, he stated that upon examination of Brushy's stripped body, he showed 26 bullet and knife scars. However, we will have to take Morrison's word for this, as he never photographed any of these scars. It would seem logical that Morrison would have made every effort to document evidence that would link Brushy to the Kid. Regardless, even if Brushy did have 26 scars as Morrison claimed, it is impossible to say that they were the same scars that Billy the Kid might have had. At best, such a statement is a huge assumption, and at worst, it is an outright lie.

Brushy lived a long and full life. He worked in the oil fields of East Texas and may have even been in the rodeo circuit for some time. It is very likely that he did have some scars, but to say that they are the same scars as Billy the Kid's is foolish and simply not true.