Pages past — March 12

On this date …

1962: District Judge E.T. Hensley ruled that the bones of outlaw Billy the Kid would remain in De Baca County. An alleged relative and Lincoln County officials had asked the court to move the remains to Lincoln County. Hensley said one reason he decided to leave the Kid alone was because “it was no longer possible to locate the grave,” United Press International reported. The judge also said it seemed to him the Kid cared not for Lincoln County, since he broke out of jail there and killed two deputies.

1955: The 22nd session of the New Mexico Legislature ended with a record 735 bills introduced. The previous record was 714, set in 1951. Officials said it would be weeks before the governor would decide which bills would become law. One bill approved by the Legislature would allow Albuquerque to levy a sales tax. Legislation that would allow other New Mexico cities to tax sales was defeated.

1950: Temperatures dropped to 9 degrees after a high of 50. Buds had started to come out on local fruit trees, but the freeze likely killed the fruit crop, The Portales Daily News reported.

Their business ...

1970: Twin Cronnies at 709 Commerce Way in Clovis was open for business again after a fire shut it down for a few days.

Transitions ...

1955: An Eastern New Mexico University graduate student was found dead at Portales’ Cal Boykin Hotel, where he was a desk clerk. Law officers said James W. Hawes, 29, died from natural causes. He was a 1943 graduate of Portales High School.

Pages Past is compiled by Editor David Stevens. Contact him at: [email protected]