Butch Cassidy

**Butch Cassidy** (born Robert LeRoy Parker; 1866-1908) was a famous outlaw in the American Wild West. He led the Wild Bunch gang, the largest and best-known group of outlaws in the western United States. They became infamous for committing daring stagecoach, train, and bank robberies throughout various Western states.

Pursued by the Pinkerton Detective Agency for more than a decade, Cassidy and his longtime partner, Harry Longabaugh (also known as the Sundance Kid), fled to South America in 1901. Seven years later, they were killed in a shootout with lawmen. 

Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch gang quickly became a legend in the United States. Their story has been heavily featured in American literature and film.

## Early life 
Butch Cassidy was born Robert LeRoy Parker on April 13, 1866 in Beaver, Utah Territory. His parents, Maximillian Parker and Ann Campbell Gillies, were English immigrants. Maximillian was one of the first Mormon emigrants to the Utah Territory, and Cassidy was raised Mormon, but was not particularly religious. He ran away from home several times and worked as a farmhand, a cowboy, a butcher, and a miner. He also traveled to different states, such as Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana, where he encountered the lawless frontier life.

Cassidy was influenced by his grandfather, who was a pioneer and a scout, and his father, who was a rancher and a hunter. They taught him to ride, shoot, and track animals. He also developed a love for reading and adventure stories.

## First crimes 
Cassidy's criminal career began in his late teens when he started stealing ("rustling") cattle and horses. In 1884 he was arrested for the first time and charged with stealing a saddle in Lander, Wyoming. He was acquitted by a sympathetic jury, but he decided to change his name to Butch Cassidy to avoid further trouble. He took the name Butch from his previous occupation as a butcher, and Cassidy from his friend and mentor Mike Cassidy, a notorious cattle rustler and outlaw. 

Cassidy used his share of the money to buy a ranch near Dubois, Wyoming, where he tried to live a respectable life. However, he soon returned to crime, as he found ranching boring and unprofitable.

Between 1894 and 1896, Cassidy was imprisoned in Wyoming for horse theft. The Pinkertons specialized in solving crimes, protecting clients, and hunting down outlaws. Their motto was "We Never Sleep", and their logo was an eye, symbolizing their vigilance and surveillance. Subsequently, private detectives were nicknamed "private eyes" as a reference to this logo. The photo was widely distributed across the United States, and Carver, Logan, Kilpatrick, and various other gang members were eventually captured.

The circumstances surrounding Butch Cassidy's death remain shrouded in mystery and speculation. According to Pinkerton agents, a group of Bolivian soldiers on horseback trapped Cassidy and the Sundance Kid near San Vicente, Bolivia, where Sundance was fatally shot and Cassidy shot himself. According to these stories, he died unnoticed in 1937, either in the northwestern United States, Nevada (possibly Johnny, Nevada), or Spokane, Washington. 

## Legacy 
Cassidy was known for his charisma, intelligence, leadership skills, humor, generosity, and compassion. He avoided killing people during his robberies, and often shared his loot with the poor and the needy. He also had a code of honor, and never betrayed his friends or partners. He was respected and admired by many people, including some lawmen and journalists. After a story circulated that he had returned stolen money to a widow, Cassidy acquired the nickname "Robin Hood of the West".

Cassidy's story was featured in countless dime novels (inexpensive books that were widely sold throughout the United States), which helped spread his story across the country. He has also been the subject of many stories about the Wild West, movies, and TV shows.  In 1903, the wildly popular movie *The Great Train Robbery* became one of the first motion pictures to tell a complete story. Later, the 1969 movie *Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid* won four Academy Awards and became a classic in American film.

## References