It was Wednesday, October 26, 1881 in Tombstone, AZ and
started out as a normal day, but would end with a historic event. The Earps and Doc Holliday got wind that the
Clantons and McLaury brothers were seen near the O.K. Corral, packing heat and
talking smack. (Wild West terminology of course, lol.) The long history and
feud between the Earps and Clantons was finally about to become a bloody
battle. Wyatt, Virgil, Morgan Earp and
Doc Holliday were face to face with Billy Claiborne (or Clayborne), Ike and
Billy Clanton, along with Tom and Frank McLaury. At 3:00 pm the shooting began and about 30
seconds later, three laid dead (McLaury brothers and Billy Clanton), while Ike
and Billy Claiborne ran away unharmed. Both
Virgil and Morgan were wounded, and Wyatt and Doc were uninjured. After that day, there was a huge funeral for
the boys, the Earps and Holliday were arrested and at the trial the judge found
there was not enough evidence to convict the men. Many say that the gunfight was actually
fought in the intersection of Third and Fremont Streets behind the O.K. Corral.
The gunfight didn’t end things because on December 28, 1881,
Virgil Earp was mortally wounded by the outlaw cowboys and the following year
on March 18th, Morgan Earp was shot and killed. Wyatt along with Doc and other men got
warrants and started the Earp Vendetta Ride going after all the men they
believed targeted his family.
That would be so cool to experience. Also, that tagline "walk where they fell" hits pretty hard.
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