The Last Lawman

On this episode of Dave Does History, we take a long, hard look at one of the most controversial figures of the American West—Pat Garrett. You probably know him as the man who shot Billy the Kid, but Garrett’s story runs far deeper than that single, fateful moment in a darkened New Mexico bedroom. Born in Alabama, raised in Louisiana, and forged by the chaos of post-Civil War America, Garrett rose from cowboy to lawman, then fell into scandal, poverty, and betrayal. Along the way, he tangled with outlaws, politicians, and a few ghosts of his own making. He stood tall in a violent time, but by the end, he was a relic with more enemies than friends. Was he a hero, a hired gun, or just a man caught in the shifting winds of a vanishing frontier? Let’s find out together. This is the life and legacy of Pat Garrett.