Bill Smith began his personal fight against crime at the age of 43 - he caught a thief who wanted to steal from the store. The scoundrel tried to run away with a leg of lamb over his shoulder, but very unluckily caught Smith's eye and was badly beaten. Mr. Smith faced the law for this act, but was set free by a sympathetic judge.

This inspired Smith to fight further. At first he suppressed all attempts to steal from his store, and then he began patrolling the night streets of New York City looking for criminals.

Soon Smith came up with an unusual image for himself and ordered a menacing mask. It was needed in order to hide his real identity.

The press reported on the hero: "All the locals have heard about this Batman. He walks the night streets, and gangsters, thieves, drunken vagrants keep their distance from him.

Batman. The Beginning.

The photo was taken in 1892 in New York City. It is a picture of Bill Smith. He was not a rich man, philanthropist, or playboy like a fictional character in comic books and movies. He was a butcher shop worker.