Tombstone, AZ: How the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral cemented its place in history
It all started with a tall bearded galoot named Ed Schieffelin, a down-on-his-luck prospector who ended up at the newly established Camp Huachuca in Arizona in 1877. When he began searching for ore in the hills across the San Pedro Valley he was warned that all he would find would be his tombstone.
Yet after several months, Schieffelin found ledges of silver. He named his first claim Tombstone. Today that would be known as a clapback.
MORE: Josephine Earp's letters to Wyatt on display at Tombstone Courthouse
By 1881, Tombstone, Arizona, had become the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. Despite a cosmopolitan air — the town had a bowling alley and ice cream parlor — these were violent times. Body counts were so high that it was said that “Tombstone had a man for breakfast every morning.”
If that’s the case, the town ate hearty on Oct. 26, 1881. That was the fateful day when a long-simmering feud erupted in a narrow vacant lot near the O.K. Corral. When the smoke cleared, three men lay dead and three more were wounded.
How the shootout happened
Tombstone City Marshal Virgil Earp appointed his brothers Wyatt and Morgan Earp, along with Doc Holliday as deputy city marshals on that snowy October day.
Wearing black frock coats, under which Holliday concealed a sawed-off shotgun, they strode through the streets to face a group of ranchers and rustlers that included Ike and Billy Clanton, Frank and Tom McLaury and Billy Claiborne.
The lawmen ostensibly were there to disarm the men who belonged to a loose federation of outlaws known as the Cowboys. Firearms in town were not permitted. Tensions had been high between the two factions for months.
The Earps and Holliday came on the Cowboys in a vacant lot, about 100 feet west of the back entrance to the O.K. Corral. Words were exchanged. It’s still hotly debated as to who fired first.
Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne fled as soon as the fight commenced. The violence quickly spilled into Fremont Street, now State Route 80. When the smoke cleared, the McLaury brothers and Billy Clanton were dead. Virgil, Morgan and Holliday were wounded. Wyatt was the only participant who emerged unscathed.
The most famous shootout of the American West lasted 30 seconds.
Wyatt Earp's Vendetta Ride
Four days after the gunfight, Ike Clanton filed murder charges against the Earps and Holliday. Justice of the Peace Wells Spicer convened a preliminary hearing to determine if there was enough evidence to go to trial. After a month of testimony and a parade of witnesses, Justice Spicer concluded no laws were broken.
That did not come close to settling the matter.
Two months later, Virgil was ambushed and seriously wounded. Soon after that, Morgan was killed with a shot to the back.
When no one was charged with either crime, Wyatt took matters into his own hands. With a few friends he set out on his bloody Vendetta Ride, tracking down and killing the men he deemed responsible. Then he left the Arizona Territory.
Visiting the O.K. Corral
Today, no Tombstone visit is complete without a stop at the O.K. Corral.
The property was expanded and now includes the actual site of where the famous gunfight began. Be sure to allow plenty of time to tour the blacksmith shop, the stables and C.S Fly’s Photo Gallery.
The shootout re-enactment takes place at 11 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. daily. The show lasts 30 minutes, an intriguing little skit that ends with a flourish of well-staged carnage. Afterward, the gunfighters are happy to pose for photos.
Getting there: From central Phoenix, take Interstate 10 east past Tucson to Benson. Go south on State Route 80 (at Exit 303) to Tombstone. The O.K. Corral is at 326 E. Allen St.
Admission: $10, free for age 5 and younger.
Details: 520-457-3456, www.okcorral.com.
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