David "Doc" Anderson, aka Billy Wilson, was born in 1862. He was an American gunslinger who rode with Billy the Kid after the Lincoln County War.
He acquired the alias Billy Wilson while riding with The Kid. Later in life, he turned away from his outlaw behavior and served as a law enforcement officer and a U.S. customs inspector.
Early Years
David "Doc" Anderson was born in Trumbull County, Ohio, during the Civil War. His family moved to southern Texas in the early 1870s.
By 1880, Anderson was in his late teens. He moved to White Oaks, New Mexico, and worked as a cowboy and became the owner of a local livery stable.
He closed his business the following year and, during the sale, received counterfeit money and had the unfortunate luck of being indicted since he was ignorant of it being fake and tried to pass the money through Lincoln County.
This incident forced him to go on the run.
Billy the Kid's Gang
He joined Billy the Kid and his gang's rustling cattle in the local area. From February to May 1880, he stole horses from the Mescalero Apache reservation and from various ranchers on the Colorado River. It was during this time he acquired the alias Billy Wilson.
They then took these cattle and sold them for $10 a head to White Oaks businessman Thomas Cooper. During the summer months, they stole cattle from rancher John Newcomb and sold them along with an additional 20 beef cattle to butcher John Singer in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Late November, Wilson and Billy the Kid were traveling in the open country near White Oaks. An 8-man posse ambushed them and shot the horses out from under them. The two were still able to escape and met up with Dave Rudabaugh and plotted their revenge.
The three men arrived in White Oaks and attempted to kill Deputy Sheriff James Redmen. However, this attempt was foiled when the three were forced to flee after a crowd of 30 - 40 local residents took to the streets.
They were tracked to a ranch about 40 miles away, and the 12-man posse surrounded them. The men managed to escape, and during the shootout, deputy sheriff Jimmy Carlyle was killed.
Following the escape, he was arrested with the rest of Billy the Kid's gang after surrendering to Pat Garrett and convicted in December 1880. He later escaped from custody in Santa Fe and went back to Texas.
There, he lived under his birth name: David L. Anderson.
Later Years and Death
Starting a ranch in Uvalde County, Texas, he eventually married and had two children. Thanks in part to the efforts of Pat Garrett and others, Anderson received a presidential pardon from President Grover Cleveland in 1896 and worked as a U.S. customs inspector for a time.
While serving as a sheriff of Terrell County, Anderson was ambushed and killed by cowboy Ed Valentine.
He responded to a call at a local saloon in Sanderson and was warned the suspect was armed and dangerous. However, Anderson did not heed the warnings since he was familiar with the man.
When he walked into the saloon, Ed Valentine immediately shot him, and the bullet killed him instantly.
Valentine was killed by a deputy when he left the saloon.
Sheriff Anderson was buried in Brackettville, Texas, and many Sanderson citizens attended the funeral. The Sheriff was well-liked, and many of his friends and acquaintances showed great emotion over his loss.
David L. Anderson, aka Billy Wilson, is an example of an outlaw turned lawman who was successful.
Unlike Burt Alvord, who began as a lawman then became an outlaw and falls off the history books somewhere in Central America, Anderson reformed and became a model citizen and a Sheriff that many looked up to.