O.K. Corral

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GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL

In October 1881 this famous gunfight occured in the town of Tombstone, Arizona. The fight included the famous Doc Holiday and Wyatt Earp, along with two of Wyatts brothers, Morgan, and Virgil. They confronted the Clanton brothers, Frank and Tom McLaury and Billy Claiborne. The end result was Billy Clanton and both of the McLawry's were killed.

Wyatt Earp, Virgil Earp, and Morgan Earp

THE EARPS
Nicholas Earp had five sons and three daughters. Like many western settlers they moved around. Jim and Virgil were born in Kentucky and had an older half brother Newton. Wyatt, named for his fathers commander in the Mexican war, was born 1848 in Monmouth, Illinois. Morgan and Warren were born in Pella Iowa. Of the sisters, only the youngest, Adelia, survived to maturity. Nicholas was a farmer, repairer of barrels, saloon keeper and a U.S. Provost Deputy for the Pela Iowa Congressonal district, during the civil war. After the war, Jim and Virgil were discharged from the Union army. Jim headed to Austin, Nevada, and Virgil to San Bernadino, California, where Wyatt and his parents had moved. In 1868 the family went back to Illinois and Wyatt and Virgil worked on the Union Pacific railroad crews. From Illinois they moved to Lamar Missouri near other Earp relatives. From there the brothers scattered to various westward towns and in 1876 their parents moved back to California.
By 1879, Wyatt was known as a shootist and started rounding up his brothers to move to Tombstone. He had started as a Law officer in Missouri in 1870, and married Urilla in January. After she died, less than a year later, he was found in Fort Smith Arkansas arraigned for stealing horses. He posted bail and disapeared turning up in buffalo country in 1871-72. There he met his life long friend Bat Masterson, while gambling in Dodge City. Bat worked for Ford County Sheriff, Charles Bassett. He later ran against Sheriff Larry Deger and lost for Dodge city Marshall. Deger was removed and Bats brother Ed was appointed. Ed was killed trying to disarm a drunken coyboy.
In April 1875 Wyatt was in Wichita Kansas in the police force of Marshall Leary, where he was discharged for an altercation in which he tried to get his brothers into law enforcement. Next he was a police officer for Dodge from 1875 to 1879 becoming Sheriff in 1876.
While on gambling stints to Texas, Wyatt met Doc Holliday, the dentist who lived as a gambler. Doc had been diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1875 in Atlanta, and went west hopeful that the climate would add a few months to his life. Because he was dying, he lived a very wild and dangerous life. He lived with a lady name Big Nose Kate. Born in Griffin, Georgia, 1852, he was born "John Henry Holliday", a blond blue eyed only child, whose mother died when he was fourteen. After her funeral his father, Henry B. Holliday married a 23 year old neighbor. Doc's family were wealthy and he graduated from the Pennsylvania College of Dentistry in 1872. After the OK corral fight Doc helped Wyatt in hunting down several outlaws in Arizona. He was arrested in Denver in 1882 for the murders in Arizona but was released by a Colorado judge. He died of tuberculosis in Glenwood Springs, Colorado November 8, 1987.

Doc Holliday

THE CLANTONS
The Clantons were the first to reach Arizona, first settling in Missouri and then Texas. Newman Clanton had five sons and three daughters and all but the oldest son John Wesley settled on the Gila river in Arizona. John, born in 1841, had left the family earlier. Phineas born in 1845, Ike 1843, Peter 1858, and Billy in 1862 were with the family. Old man Clanton was a rancher, farmer, freightor, and operated an inn at Camp Thomas in the 1870's. He and his sons were also known to have rustled cattle crossing the Mexican border.
Ike Clanton

THE MCLAURY'S
Frank and Tom Mclaury were born in New York state but the inscription on their coffins would be marked Mississippi. They were two of eleven children, born to Robert Houston McLaury and Margaret Rowland-McLaury. Their father Robert moved to Iowa where he practiced law and farmed. Frank, who was named Robert was born in 1848, the eighth child, and his brother Thomas was the tenth child born five years later. After visiting their brother Will in Fort Worth, they arrived in Arizona in 1877. In 1878 the brothers started a sheep and cattle ranch. In 1880 Wyatt became the sheriff of Tombstone. One of Wyatt's first incidents with the McLaury's was July 1880 when government mules stolen from Camp Rucker were suspected of being hidden on the McLaury ranch. Although the animals were not found it put bad blood between the Earps and McLaurys.
Frank McLaury and Tom McLaury

TOMBSTONE
When they reached Tombstone, Virgil Earp was a deputy U.S. Marshall and Wyatt and his brothers started mining silver. Jim Earp worked a job dealing Faro at Vogan's saloon and was listed in the 1880 census as saloon keeper. John Behan competed and won the Cochise County sherriff's position, over Wyatt. The McClaury's would move to Sulphur Spring Valley, East of Tombstone, where they provided holding pens for rustled cattle. Sheriff Behan developed a close releationahip with the rustlers He had a political alliances with the Clantons, McLaurys, and others. Later, Behen's lady friend Josie began a relationhsip with Wyatt Earp.
After an attempted stage holdup killing Bud Philpot, Sheriff Behan and Marshall Williams rode out with a posse including Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan Earp, Doc Holiday and Bat Masterson. They located Luther King who was holding the horses and he identified Billy Leonard, Harry Head, and Jim Crane. There were rumors around Tombstone that the Lawmen themselves were involved in the robberies because Doc Holliday and Billy Leonard were old friends. Kate Elder "Big Nose Kate" whose real name was Mary Kathernine Horony, near the end of her life said that Doc and Wyatt were involved in the stage robbery. She supposedly married Doc Holiday in Georgia in 1876, and followed him and lived with him in Tombstone. Ike Clanton would later say that Virgil and Morgan Earp had kept posse members in the mountains chasing King, when the real escape route was San Jose mountains in Mexican Sonora. Wyatt would continue to build his mining opportunities while rumors remained about the Benson stage robery. Leonard, Head, and Crane remained free and Doc Holiday was charged in another shooting incident. Wyatt, concerned about the rumors would approach Ike Clanton with a deal to lure in the three robbers but it never occured because Leonard and Head were killed in Hachita New Mexico by the Hazlett brothers. Crane then killed the Hazletts. Ike would later swear in court he had not made any agreement with Wyatt to lure in the robbers. Sherriff Behan, Marshall William and City Marshall Virgil Earp, were having trouble working together. Wyatt wanted Behans job and had taken Behans girlfriend, Josie. Behan suspected the Earps of the Benson stage robbery. Also, since the arrest of Stilwell and Spence for the robbery of the Bisbee stage, there were repeated threats to the Earp brothers, Virgil, Wyatt, and Morgan, to get even with them for the part they had taken in the pursuit and arrest. The McLaurys and Clantons were friends of Stilwell and Spence and Ike Clanton helped put up their bail. Stilwell, a union leader, was the brother of famous army scout Simpson "Commanche Jack" Stilwell and had came to Tombstone with Frank Leslie and the famous scout Tom Horn.
THE GUNFIGHT
The night before the famous gunfight, Doc Holliday had words and challenged Ike Clanton. The Earps version was that Wyatt, appointed acting city marshall by Virgil, and Morgan also a sworn officer were present. Ike left to the street and Wyatt said Morgan and Doc followed. Virgil told Doc and Ike he would arrest them if they continued the argument. Wyatt's account stated that, Ike told them he would be ready for them in the morning. The next day October 25, 1881, Ike went looking for Doc Holliday, but before he could find him, Virgil and Morgan Earp arrested him. He was later fined \$27.50 for carrying firearms in the city. Ike's version was that he was hit from behind and recovered to find Morgan standing over him with a gun.
After Ike's court fine, Wyatt left the building and walked into Tom McLaury. They had words and McLaury said he was unarmed, Wyatt hit him with his fist and then his pistol knocking him to the ground. About 2:00 Frank McLaurey and Billy Clanton rode to town and heard of Wyatt hitting Tom McLaury.
The McLaury's, the Clantons, and Billy Claiborne went to the O.K. corral. The surviors later said they were getting their horses to leave town. Sheriff Behan went down to ask for thier weapons and Ike Clanton and Tom McLaury showed that they were unarmed. Billy Clanton was armed, but refused to surrender his weapon, saying he was leaving town. Frank McLaury also refused, unless the Earps were disarmed. Behan returned to stop the Earps and Doc, but they continued saying they were going to disarm the McLaurys and Clantons. The O. K. Corral Gun fight lasted 30 seconds, Billy Clanton was shot, Frank McLaury was shot by Wyatt, and Tom McLaury by Doc Holliday. After the first few shots, Ike Clanton broke and ran. Billy Claiborne also ran. Morgan Earp had a shoulder wound, Virgil a leg wound, and Doc Holliday, a grazed left hip. Wyatt Earp was not wounded.
The Earps and Doc Holliday were arrested for murder by Sheriff Behan. At the trial following the gunfight, it was determined that the Earps acted within the law.
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