The Sundance Kid: Wild Bunch Member And Butch Cassidy’s Right-Hand Man
Public DomainSundance Kid with his companion, Etta Place. Circa 1901.
Harry Longabaugh’s life as a Wild West outlaw got off to a rough start. Born in Pennsylvania in 1867, he headed west at a young age and stole a horse from Sundance, Wyoming. Longabaugh was promptly arrested for the crime, but he also earned his famous nickname: the “Sundance Kid.”
According to Legends of America, Longabaugh briefly tried honest work after he got out of prison in 1889. But he returned to his outlaw ways and, by 1897, he was associating with a band of outlaws who made up the Wild Bunch.
History reports that the Wild Bunch executed a number of train robberies in the 1890s, and often made off with tens of thousands of dollars.
But although newspapers relished their exploits, the robberies also drew the attention of law enforcement. And by 1901, the Sundance Kid and another member of the Wild Bunch, Butch Cassidy — whose real name was Robert LeRoy Parker — decided to hightail it out of the Wild West.
Public DomainWild Bunch members Harry Longabaugh, Will Carver, Ben Kilpatrick, Harvey Logan, and Butch Cassidy. 1900.
Along with Longabaugh’s companion, Etta Place, the Wild West outlaws made their way to South America. They settled in Argentina and tried being farmers. But even though they had left the Wild West, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were still Wild West outlaws through and through. They soon started robbing local banks and trains again and fled to Bolivia when they realized that the authorities were after them once more.
From there, the story gets a bit murky. Though most believe that Longabaugh and Cassidy died in a shootout with Bolivian soldiers in 1908, others aren’t as sure. Their bodies were never officially identified, and no photos were ever taken for evidence. Rumors persist that the duo managed to escape death — and even made their way back to the United States.
Like any good Wild West legend, the truth about their fate remains hazy.
After reading about these nine notorious Wild West outlaws, discover the forgotten stories of these Black Wild West heroes. Then, take a look at these stunning colorized photos of the Old West.
