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AMELIA EARHART
On July 2, 1937, Amelia Earhart flew away from a town called Lae in the South Pacific. Earhart was attempting to circumnavigate the globe. After taking off from Lae, she disappeared. The Superhero Historians will investigate her life, her final flight, and the possible outcomes to that flight.
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While the Earps and Doc Holliday slept comfortably in bed, Ike Clanton searched Tombstone carrying a Winchester rifle and a six-shooter. Ike went from saloon to saloon to boarding house, brandishing his weapons and telling anyone who asked that he was looking for Holliday and the Earps. The night before he was not “heeled,” but now Ike claimed to be ready for the fight.
We have the Earps and Holliday. We have the Cowboys. Political tensions are brewing and both parties are making accusations. Tombstone has Ordinance Number 9, restricting the carrying of firearms. A fight is definitely in the works, but there needs to be a tipping point, where actions go over the line too far to come back. That happens on October 25, 1881.
Two of the lesser mentioned fighters at the OK Corral are Billy Claiborne and Wes Fuller, both on the side of the cowboys. One of the reasons they are lesser mentioned is that they both turned from participants to witnesses as soon as the bullets started whizzing around that vacant lot.
Why is it called the Gunfight at the OK Corral when the fight didn’t take place in the actual corral? Well, probably because the Gunfight at the Vacant Lot # 2, Block 17 doesn’t sound as snazzy! The shootout took place in this lot, which was about 18 feet wide, and sat behind and to the side of the actual OK Corral. If you look at a map of Tombstone, the lot is located by Fremont and Third Streets. Some of the fighting ended up spilling over into Fremont Street. It all happened next to C.S. Fly’s photo studio and boarding house.
Sorry I can’t help it, every single time I hear about C.S. Fly’s Shop, I think of fishing… then trout… or even… salmon. Hmmm.
The single action revolver set the standard for firearms in the West. The single action revolver must have its hammer cocked in order to fire, and then it only fires once. That is why it’s called “single action.” Modern revolvers are “double action,” meaning that you don’t have to cock the hammer to fire. You can just pull the trigger. This is safer than the single action because when the hammer is cocked it can accidentally go off. This happened many times in the “Wild West,” so it became common for gun carriers to leave an empty chamber in their gun, so if the hammer clicked, it would click on an empty chamber.
The Clantons were a very interesting bunch and acted as the loose hub of the cowboy wheel, so to speak. The Clanton ranch in Lewis Springs, a little hop skip and jump out of Tombstone, was a place where the Clantons worked with other cowboys. Old Man Clanton ran the ranch with his four sons, two of them, Ike and Billy, were involved at the OK Corral.
People often use the term “cowboys” when talking about the gunfight at the OK Corral: the Earps shooting it out with the cowboys in a vacant lot by Fly’s Photo Studio. In fact, the cowboys were a very loosely tied together group, very loosely tied. Most of the people in Tombstone who cared for law and order considered anyone who lived outside of “law and order” a cowboy. This feeling increased after “Curly” Bill Brocius shot and killed Marshall Fred White. In reality, the cowboy represented anyone who lived life outside of established society. These were people who both ranched and rustled. So they weren’t always on the other side of the law, just on the outside of the community. There is also the political aspect to consider. We have to consider the political. Most cowboys, especially around Tombstone, were Democrat. Republicans, like the Earps, did their best to fuel the anti-cowboy fire. If you are wondering why some ranching and rustling cowboys would care about politics, just remember that it is easy to live your lifestyle when the people in charge, especially in law enforcement, are on your side.
Let’s talk about some of the rowdies who faced off with the Earps. By the time of the Tombstone boom, cattle ranching (and rustling) were major industries in Arizona. Many of the cattle were driven clear from Texas. “Yee haw.” Although the cattle traveled in herds, the workers were very solitary men who took advantage of the cattle industry to travel and work throughout the west. Sounds a bit like the buffalo hunters. Frank and Tom McLaury were two such men.
Ah, the Earps are coming to town! The most rootin’ tootin’, gun totin’, badge wearin’ lords of justice the “Wild West” ever saw. Well, at least that’s the way they would want you to see it. What’s that you say? “Don’t forget about the other brothers who lived in Tombstone.” Let’s see, Wyatt, no he’s the main dude. You have Morgan and Virgil… oh yeah, James Earp and Warren Earp. James Earp was the oldest while Warren sat as the youngest. Due to injuries in the Civil War, James did not participate in the routines of life that his other brothers did. Warren, however, was always ready for action.
Let’s move on to the three main players from the Earp family. Virgil came to Tombstone as a United States Marshall and was held in high esteem by most people. Morgan came to Tombstone a bit later from the parent’s home in California. He had also worked in law enforcement on occasion, but never liked to stay in one place for too long. Then we come to Wyatt Earp. Wyatt made a name for himself in Dodge City, Kansas. While Wyatt worked in law enforcement, he was also on the other side of the law as well. He spent considerable time as a buffalo hunter on the plains. During this job he was able to perfect his toughness, as buffalo hunting was not for the meek. Despite putting forward the image that he didn’t want to be in law enforcement, Wyatt worked hard to win positions within the law. He came to Tombstone looking for fortune.
The Earps definitely stuck together. Although one or the other may wander away from time to time, they always seemed to find each other again. A very close knit family!
This is really neat. You can still visit the Tombstone Epitaph printing office. Get a look at how newspapers were printed back then. You can even look at the original paper account of the gunfight at the OK Corral. How cool is that? Okay, so you can’t get to Tombstone right now. That’s fine because you can still order a reproduction of the gunfight account. If you are interested, contact us and we will send you details of how to do that.
The Epitaph was first published by Philip Clum, a fan of the Earps, on May 1, 1880. Clum had a printing press shipped from San Francisco to Tucson. It made the trip from Tucson to Tombstone by oxcart! Wow.
As always, I’ll keep it short and to the point. Phineas mentioned that the shootout at the OK Corral came not too long after the end of the Civil War, that tensions between the Republican Earps and the Democrat Cowboys added fuel to the already burning fire. What other effects did the Civil War have on the West? Listen up and I’ll tell you. It created more technology in terms of weapons and more soldiers who came home from the war knowing how to fight. It is not certain that the Civil War got people used to using their guns to settle things, because while many gunfighters did participate in the Civil War, many did not. However, it is certain that the war contributed to weapon technology.
Welcome back everyone. Hope your weekend was as swell as mine. We cooked up this amazing salmon last night, with lemon and… Oh, sorry. I almost forgot about Tombstone, the OK Corral, and the Earps. Salmon can do that kind of thing to a bear like me.
One character who was not directly involved in the gunfight at the OK Corral, but helped add to the tensions that made the gunfight unfold, was Cochise County Sheriff Johnny Behan. Behan came to Tombstone in 1880. Originally from Missouri, he had spent considerable time in the Arizona Territory before landing in Tombstone. Behan was very involved in politics and law enforcement, holding many positions in both fields during his life. It is in this respect that he became a major “thorn in the side” of the Earps.
How did people get to Tombstone? Remember that this was a new “town” in the frontier, there were no roads, no cars yet, and the train did not stop in Tombstone. So, how did people get there? I’ll tell you. Stagecoaches were set up to take people from Tucson to Tombstone. I’m sure you have seen a stagecoach. If not, just scroll down and there it is!
You know how I feel about politics… I love it. Love it. You may have thought the gunfight at the OK Corral was about law versus crime. Did you ever think it was about politics? No. Well, maybe we should think about it. Remember that the gunfight took place in 1881, only 16 years after the end of the American Civil War. Seems like a long time, but not really. Virgil Earp was even a veteran of the Union Army. Now let’s add some sums to the equation: the Earp brothers were Republicans and most of the “Cowboys” were Democrats. Need more? Okay, John Behan the Cochise County Sheriff, rival to Wyatt and friend to the “Cowboys” was a Democrat. He was a Democrat. So is it possible that the gunfight was about more than just law and order? Oh yeah!
It is important to know that Tombstone was growing fast at that time. People were pouring into the town in hopes of striking it rich. Even the Earp brothers owned a few Claims. So controlling power in Tombstone meant money. Big money. There is also the left over feelings from the Civil War. Add that into the “Wild West” and you get a very explosive situation. Very explosive. I told you politics were fun!
