Arizona
Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
, United States, founded in 1879 by
prospector
Prospector may refer to:
Space exploration
* Prospector (spacecraft), a planned lunar probe, canceled in 1962
* ''Lunar Prospector'', a NASA spacecraft
Trains
* Prospector (train), a passenger train operated by the Denver & Rio Grande Western ra ...
Pima County
Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...
,
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona, commonly known as the Arizona Territory, was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the ...
. It became one of the last
boomtown
A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although t ...
s in the
American frontier
The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the Geography of the United States, geography, History of the United States, history, Folklore of the United States, folklore, and Cultur ...
. The town grew significantly into the mid-1880s as the local mines produced $40 to $85 million in silver
bullion
Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes from ...
, the largest productive silver district in Arizona. Its population grew from 100 to around 14,000 in less than seven years. It is best known as the site of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral and draws most of its revenue from tourism. The city had a permanent population of 1,308, according to the 2020 census.
History
The town was established on Goose Flats, a
mesa
A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge, or hill, bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and standing distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks, such as shales, capped by a ...
above the Goodenough Mine. Within two years of its founding, although far distant from any other
metropolitan area
A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...
, Tombstone had a bowling alley, four churches, an ice house, a school, two banks, three newspapers, and an ice-cream parlor, alongside 110 saloons, 14 gambling halls, and numerous
dance hall
Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for Dance, dancing, but usually refers to a specific type of twentieth-century venue, with dance clubs (nightclubs) becoming more popular towards the end of the century. The palais de danse was a term ap ...
s and
brothel
A brothel, strumpet house, bordello, bawdy house, ranch, house of ill repute, house of ill fame, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in Human sexual activity, sexual activity with prostitutes. For legal or cultural reasons, establis ...
s. All of these businesses were situated among and atop many silver mines. The gentlemen and ladies of Tombstone attended operas presented by visiting acting troupes at the
Schieffelin Hall
Schieffelin Hall is a building from the American Old West in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, the largest standing adobe structure still existent in the United States southwest. There are other adobe structures, houses dating from 1000 in Taos and S ...
opera house, while the
miner
A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face (mining), face; cutt ...
s and
cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...
s saw shows at the Bird Cage Theatre and brothel.
Under the surface were tensions that grew into deadly conflict. The mining capitalists and the townspeople were largely Republicans from the Northern states. Many of the ranchers (some of whom—like the Clantons—were also rustlers or other criminal varieties) were Confederate sympathizers and Democrats. The booming city was only from the U.S.–Mexico border and was an open market for cattle stolen from ranches in
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
, Mexico, by a loosely organized band of
outlaw
An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them. ...
s known as
The Cowboys
''The Cowboys'' is a 1972 American Western film starring John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, and Bruce Dern, and featuring Colleen Dewhurst and Slim Pickens. It was the feature film debut of Robert Carradine. Based on the 1971 novel of the sam ...
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...
and Morgan—as well as Doc Holliday, arrived in December 1879 and mid-1880. The Earps had ongoing conflicts with Cowboys Ike and Billy Clanton, Frank and Tom McLaury, and Billy Claiborne. The Cowboys repeatedly threatened the Earps over many months until the conflict escalated into a shootout on October 26, 1881. The historic gunfight is often portrayed as occurring at the O.K. Corral, though it actually occurred a short distance away in an empty lot on Fremont Street.
In the mid-1880s, the silver mines penetrated the water table and the mining companies made significant investments in specialized pumps. A fire in 1886 destroyed the Grand Central hoist and the pumping plant, and it was deemed unprofitable to rebuild the costly pumps. The city nearly became a
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
, saved only because it was the Cochise County
seat
A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation.
Types of seat
The ...
until 1929. The city's population dwindled to a low of 646 in 1910, but grew to 1,380 by 2010. Tombstone has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.
Ed Schieffelin was briefly a scout for the U. S. Army headquartered at Camp Huachuca. Schieffelin frequently searched the wilderness looking for valuable ore samples. At the Santa Rita mines in nearby Santa Cruz Valley, three superintendents had been killed by Native Americans. When friend and fellow Army Scout Al Sieber learned what Schieffelin was up to, he is quoted as telling him, "The only rock you will find out there will be your own
tombstone
A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...
", or, according to an earlier version of the story, "Better take your coffin with you; you will find your tombstone there, and nothing else."
In 1877, Schieffelin used Brunckow's Cabin as a base of operations to survey the country. After many months, while working the hills east of the San Pedro River, he found pieces of silver ore in a dry wash on a high plateau called Goose Flats. It took him several more months to find the source. When he located the vein, he estimated it to be fifty feet long and twelve inches wide. Schieffelin took on a partner named William Griffith who financed the filing of the claim in return for a later claim for himself. Griffith filed Schieffelin's first claim, which was named Tombstone, on September 3, 1877. Another account says the first claim was called Graveyard "because it proved worthless and for no other reason."
When the first claims were filed, the initial settlement of tents and wooden shacks was located at Watervale, near the Lucky Cuss mine, with a population of about 100. The Goodenough Mine strike occurred shortly after. Former Territorial Governor Anson P. K. Safford offered financial backing for a share of the mining claims, and Schieffelin, his brother Al, and their partner Richard Gird formed the Tombstone Mining and Milling Company and built a
stamp mill
A stamp mill (or stamp battery or stamping mill) is a type of Mill (grinding), mill machine that crushes material by pounding rather than Mill (grinding), grinding, either for further processing or for extraction of metallic ores. Breaking materia ...
near the San Pedro River, about away. As the mill was being built, U.S. Deputy Mineral Surveyor Solon M. Allis finished surveying the new town's site in March 1879. The tents and shacks near the Lucky Cuss were moved to the new town site on Goose Flats, a
mesa
A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge, or hill, bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and standing distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks, such as shales, capped by a ...
above the Goodenough Mine at above sea level and large enough to hold a growing town. Lots were immediately sold on Allen Street for $5.00 each. The town soon had some 40 cabins and about 100 residents. At the town's founding in March 1879, it took its name from Schieffelin's initial mining claim. By fall 1879, a few thousand hardy souls were living in a canvas and matchstick camp perched amidst the richest silver strike in the Arizona Territory.
When Cochise County was formed from the eastern portion of Pima County on February 1, 1881, Tombstone became the new
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
.
Telegraph
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas ...
service to the town was established that same month. In early March 1880, the Schieffelins' Tombstone Mining and Milling Company which owned the original Goodenough Mine and the nearby Tough Nut Mine (among others), was sold to investors from
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
. Two months later, it was reported that the Tough Nut Mine was working a vein of silver ore across that assayed at $170 per ton, with some ore assaying at $22,000 a ton.
On September 9, 1880, the richly appointed Grand Hotel was opened, adorned with fine oil paintings, thick Brussels carpets, toilet stands, elegant chandeliers, silk-covered furniture, walnut furniture, and a kitchen with hot and cold running water. At the height of the silver mining boom, when the population was about 10,000, the city was host to Kelly's Wine House, featuring 26 varieties of wine imported from Europe, a beer imported from
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
named " Coors", cigars, a bowling alley, and many other amenities common to large cities.
Early conflicts
Under the surface were other tensions aggravating the simmering distrust. Most of the Cowboys were Confederate sympathizers and Democrats from Southern states, especially Texas. The mine and business owners, miners, townspeople and city lawmen including the Earps were largely Republicans from the Northern states. There was also the fundamental conflict over resources and land, with traditional, Southern-style " small government"
agrarianism
Agrarianism is a social philosophy, social and political philosophy that advocates for rural development, a Rural area, rural agricultural lifestyle, family farming, widespread property ownership, and political decentralization. Those who adhere ...
of the rural Cowboys contrasted to Northern-style "big-government" development.
In the early 1880s, smuggling and theft of cattle, alcohol, and tobacco across the U.S./Mexico border about from Tombstone were common. The Mexican government taxed these items heavily and smugglers earned a handsome profit by sneaking these products across the border. The illegal cross-border smuggling contributed to the lawlessness of the region. Many of these crimes were carried out by outlaw elements labeled " Cow-boys", a loosely organized band of friends and acquaintances who teamed up for various crimes and came to each other's aid. The ''San Francisco Examiner'' wrote in an editorial, "Cowboys rethe most reckless class of outlaws in that wild country...infinitely worse than the ordinary robber." At that time during the 1880s in Cochise County it was an insult to call a legitimate cattleman a "Cowboy". Legitimate cowmen were referred to as cattle herders or ranchers. The Cowboys were nonetheless welcome in town because of their free-spending habits, but shootings were common.
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
On the evening of March 15, 1881, three
Cochise County Cowboys
The Cochise County Cowboys is the modern name for a loosely associated group of outlaws living in Pima and Cochise Counties in Arizona in the late 19th century. The term "cowboy", as opposed to " cowhand," had only begun to come into wider use ...
attempted to rob a Kinnear & Company
stagecoach
A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...
carrying $26,000 in silver bullion , en route from Tombstone to
Benson, Arizona
Benson is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, Cochise County, Arizona, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 5,355. It was founded as a rail terminal for the area, and is located approxim ...
, the nearest railroad freight terminal.
Near Drew's Station, just outside Contention City, the stage was attacked. Eli "Budd" Philpot, a popular and well-known driver. and a passenger named Peter Roerig riding in the rear
dickey seat
A rumble seat (American English), dicky (dickie/dickey) seat (British English), also called a mother-in-law seat, is an upholstered exterior front-facing seat which is folded into the rear of a Coach (carriage), coach, carriage, or early motorcar. ...
were both shot and killed. Deputy U.S. Marshal Virgil Earp, with his temporary deputies and brothers
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – January 13, 1929) was an American lawman in the American West, including Dodge City, Kansas, Dodge City, Wichita, Kansas, Wichita, and Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone. Earp was involved in the gunfight ...
and
Morgan Earp
Morgan Seth Earp (April 24, 1851 – March 18, 1882) was an American sheriff and Marshal, lawman. He served as Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone, Arizona Territory, Arizona's Special Policeman when he helped his brothers Virgil Earp, Virgil and W ...
, pursued the Cowboys suspected of the murders. That set off a chain of events that culminated, on October 26, 1881, in a gunfight in a vacant lot owned by photographer C. S. Fly near, but not in or at, the O.K. Corral, during which the lawmen and Doc Holliday killed Tom McLaury, Frank McLaury, and Billy Clanton.
The gunfight was the result of a personal, family, and political feud. Two months later, on the evening of December 28, 1881, Virgil Earp was ambushed and seriously wounded on the streets of Tombstone by hidden assailants shooting from the second story of an unfinished building. Although identified, the suspects provided witnesses who supplied alibis, and the men were not prosecuted. On March 18, 1882, while
Morgan Earp
Morgan Seth Earp (April 24, 1851 – March 18, 1882) was an American sheriff and Marshal, lawman. He served as Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone, Arizona Territory, Arizona's Special Policeman when he helped his brothers Virgil Earp, Virgil and W ...
was playing billiards at 10 p.m. at Campbell & Hatch in Allen Street—in the heart of Tombstone's still-current downtown—he was killed by a shot through a window that struck his spine, as Wyatt looked on. Once again, the assailants were named but escaped arrest due to legal technicalities. Wyatt Earp concluded that official justice was out of reach. Armed with warrants obtained via the U. S. Marshal's Office, he led a posse of US deputy marshals on what became known as the Earp Vendetta Ride, pursuing and killing four of the men they held responsible.
Much of the Cowboy-related crime subsided after the Earp family left Arizona in early 1882, following the attempted murder of Tombstone Marshal Virgil Earp on December 28, 1881, and the murder of Deputy Marshal Morgan Earp on March 18, 1882. John Slaughter was elected Cochise County Sheriff in 1886 and served two terms. He hired Burt Alvord, who as a 15-year-old boy had witnessed the shootout between the Earps and Cowboys. Alford served very effectively for three years until he began to drink heavily and associate with outlaws, as had Earp-era County Sheriff Johnny Behan, a close friend and constant protector of the law-breaking Clanton family and their friends.
Boothill Graveyard
Tom McLaury, Frank McLaury, and Billy Clanton, killed in the O.K. Corral shootout, are among those buried in the town's Boothill Graveyard. Of the number of pioneer Boot Hill cemeteries in the Old West, so named because most of those buried in them had "died with their boots on", Boothill in Tombstone is one of the best-known.
Silver mining
Tombstone boomed, but founder Ed Schieffelin was more interested in
prospecting
Prospecting is the first stage of the geological analysis (followed by Mining engineering#Pre-mining, exploration) of a territory. It is the search for minerals, fossils, precious metals, or mineral specimens. It is also known as fossicking.
...
than owning a mine. Ed was one-third partners with his brother Al Schieffelin and Richard Gird. There were several hundred mining claims near Tombstone, although the most productive were immediately south of town. These included the Goodenough, Toughnut, Contention, Grand Central, Lucky Cuss, Emerald, and Silver Thread. Due to the lack of readily available water near town, mills were built along the San Pedro River about away, leading to the establishment of several small mill towns, including Charleston, Contention City, and Fairbank.
Schieffelin left Tombstone to find more ore and when he returned four months later, Gird had lined up buyers for their interest in the Contention claim, which they sold for $10,000. It would later yield millions in silver. They sold a half-interest in the Lucky Cuss, and the other half turned into a steady stream of money. Al and Ed Schieffelin later sold their two-thirds interest in the Tough Nut for $1 million, and sometime later Gird sold his one-third interest for the same amount.
There are widely varying estimates of the value of gold and silver mined during the course of Tombstone's history. The Tombstone mines produced 32 million troy ounces (1,000 metric tons) of silver, more than any other mining district in Arizona. In 1883, writer Patrick Hamilton estimated that during the first four years of activity the mines produced about US$25,000,000 (approximately $ today). Other estimates include US$40 to US$85 million (about $ to $ today). Renewed mining is planned for the area.
One of the byproducts of the vast riches being produced, lawsuits became very prevalent. Between 1880 and 1885 the courts were clogged with many cases, often about land claims and properties. As a result,
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
s began to settle in Tombstone and became even wealthier than the miners and those who financed the mining. In addition, because many of the lawsuits required expert analysis of the underground, many geologists and engineers found employment in Tombstone and settled there. In the end, a thorough mapping of the area was completed by experts which resulted in maps documenting Tombstone's mining claims better than any other mining district of the West.
Mining was an easy task at Tombstone in the early days, ore being rich and close to the surface. One man could pull out ore equal to what three men produced elsewhere. Some residents of Tombstone became quite wealthy and spent considerable money during its boom years. Tombstone's first newspaper, the ''Nugget'', was established in the fall of 1879. '' The Tombstone Epitaph'' was founded on May 1, 1880. As the fastest growing
boomtown
A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although t ...
in the American Southwest, the silver industry and attendant wealth attracted many professionals and merchants who brought their wives and families. With them came churches and ministers. They brought a Victorian sensibility and became the town's elite. Many citizens of Tombstone dressed well, and up-to-date fashion could be seen in this growing mining town. Visitors expressed their amazement at the quality and diversity of products that were readily available in the area. The men who worked the mines were largely European immigrants. The Chinese did the town's laundry and provided other services. The
Cowboys
A cowboy is a professional pastoralist or mounted livestock herder, usually from the Americas or Australia.
Cowboy(s) or The Cowboy(s) may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''Cowboy'' (1958 film), starring Glenn Ford
* ''Cowboy'' (1966 film), ...
ran the countryside and stole cattle from haciendas across the international border in
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
, Mexico.
When the railroad was not built into Tombstone as had been planned, the increasingly sophisticated city of Tombstone remained relatively isolated, deep in a Federal territory that was largely an unpopulated desert and wilderness. Tombstone and its surrounding countryside also became known as one of the deadliest regions in the West. Water was hauled in until the Huachuca Water Company, funded in part by investors like Dr. George E. Goodfellow, built a pipeline from the Huachuca Mountains in 1881. No sooner was a pipeline completed than Tombstone's silver mines struck water.
City growth and decline
By mid-1881, the town had fancy restaurants, Vogan's Bowling Alley, four churches—Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, and Methodist—an ice house, a school, the Schieffelin Hall opera house, two banks, three newspapers, and an ice cream parlor, alongside 110 saloons, 14 gambling halls, several Chinese restaurants, French, two Italian, numerous Mexican, several upscale "Continental" establishments, and many "home cooking" hot spots including Nellie Cashman's famous Rush House and numerous brothels all situated among and on top of a number of dirty, hardscrabble mines. The Arizona Telephone Company began installing poles and lines for the city's first telephone service on March 15, 1881.
Investor
An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future Return on capital, return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of pr ...
s from the northeastern United States bought many of the leading mining operations. The mining itself was carried out by immigrants from Europe, chiefly
Cornwall
Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
,
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
, and
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Chinese and Mexican labor provided services including laundry, construction, restaurants, and hotels, but immigrant labor provoked backlash; an "Anti-Chinese League" was formed in the 1880s to boycott Chinese businesses and workers.
The mines and stamping mills ran three shifts. Miners were paid union wages of $4.00 per day working six 10-hour shifts per week. The roughly 6,000 men working in Tombstone generated more than $168,000 a week (around $ today) in income. The mostly young, single, male population spent their hard-earned cash on Allen Street, the major commercial center, open 24 hours a day.
The respectable folks saw traveling theater shows at
Schieffelin Hall
Schieffelin Hall is a building from the American Old West in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, the largest standing adobe structure still existent in the United States southwest. There are other adobe structures, houses dating from 1000 in Taos and S ...
, opened on June 8, 1881. On December 25, 1881, the Bird Cage Theatre opened on Allen Street, offering the miners and cowboys their kind of bawdy entertainment. One of the prime entertainments at the Bird Cage Theatre was
Cornish wrestling
Cornish wrestling () is a form of wrestling that has been established in Cornwall for many centuries and possibly longer. It is similar to the Breton people, Breton Gouren wrestling style. It is colloquially known as "wrasslin’"Phillipps, K C: ...
competitions, with the results being regularly published in the UK.''Jerry prepares for a return to Tombstone'', West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser, June 10, 1999, p30.
In 1882, ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that "the Bird Cage Theatre is the wildest, wickedest night spot between Basin Street and the
Barbary Coast
The Barbary Coast (also Barbary, Berbery, or Berber Coast) were the coastal regions of central and western North Africa, more specifically, the Maghreb and the Ottoman borderlands consisting of the regencies in Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, a ...
." The Bird Cage remained open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year until it closed its doors in 1889. Respectable women stayed on the north side of Allen Street. The prostitutes worked the saloons on the south side and in the southeast quarter of the town, as far as possible from the proper residential section north of Fremont Street.
By late 1881, Tombstone had more than 7,000 citizens, excluding all Chinese, Mexicans, women, and children residents. At the height of the town's boom, the official population reached about 10,000, with several thousand more uncounted. In 1882, the Cochise County Courthouse was built at a cost around $45,000.
Fires
Due to poor building practices and poor fire protection common to boomtown construction, Tombstone was hit by two major fires. On June 22, 1881, the first fire destroyed the 66 businesses making up the eastern half of the business district. The fire began when a lit cigar ignited a barrel of whiskey in the Arcade Saloon.
On May 25, 1882, another, more destructive fire started in a Chinese laundry on Fifth Street between Toughnut and Allen Streets. It destroyed the Grand Hotel and the Tivoli Saloon before it jumped Fremont Street, destroying more than 100 businesses and most of the business district. Lacking enough water to put out the flames, buildings in the fire's path were dynamited to deny the fire fuel. Total damages were estimated to be $700,000, far more than the estimated $250,000 insurance coverage, but rebuilding started right away, nonetheless.
In March 1883, along one short stretch of Allen Street, drinking establishments were available in two of the principal hotels, Eagle Brewery, Cancan Chop-House, French Rotisserie, Alhambra, Maison Dore, City of Paris, Brown's Saloon, Fashion Saloon, Miners' Home, Kelly's Wine-House, the Grotto, the Tivoli, and two more unnamed saloons.
Mines strike water
The Tough Nut Mine first experienced seepage in 1880. In March 1881, the Sulphuret Mine struck water at . A year later, in March 1882, miners in a new shaft of the Grand Central Mine hit water at . The flow was not at first large enough to stop work, but experienced miners thought the water flow would increase, and it did. Soon, constant pumping with a pump was insufficient. The silver ore deposits they sought were soon under water.
Several mine managers traveled to
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
and met with the principal owners of the Contention Mine. They talked about options for draining the mines, and found the only system available for pumping water out of mines below was the
Cornish engine
A Cornish engine is a type of steam engine developed in Cornwall, England, mainly for pumping water from a mine. It is a form of beam engine that uses steam at a higher pressure than the earlier engines designed by James Watt. The engines were ...
, which had been used at the
Comstock Lode
The Comstock Lode is a lode of silver ore located under the eastern slope of Mount Davidson, a peak in the Virginia Range in Virginia City, Nevada (then western Utah Territory), which was the first major discovery of silver ore in the U ...
in the 1870s. They bought and installed the huge Cornish engines in the Contention and Grand Central mines. By mid-February 1884, the engines were removing of water every 24 hours. The city merchants celebrated the continued success of mining and the transfer of funds to their businesses. The Contention and the Grand Central found that their pumps were draining the mining district, benefiting other mines as well, but the other companies refused to pay a proportion of the expense.
On May 26, 1886, the Grand Central hoist and pumping plant burned. The fire was so intense that the metal components of the Cornish engine melted and warped. The headworks of the main mine shaft were also destroyed. Shortly afterward, the price of silver slid to 90 cents an ounce. The mines that remained operational laid off workers. Individuals who had thought about leaving Tombstone when the mine flooding started now took action. The price of silver briefly recovered for a while and a few mines began producing again, but never at the level reached in the early 1880s.
Tourism
The U.S. census recorded fewer than 1,900 residents in 1890 and fewer than 700 residents in 1900. Tombstone was saved from becoming a
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
partly because it remained the Cochise County seat until 1929, when county residents voted to move county offices to nearby Bisbee. The classic Cochise County Courthouse and adjacent gallows yard in Tombstone are preserved as a museum.
Town life was rather quiet in the 1930s and 1940s, but the town received renewed interest in the 1950s and 1960s due to portrayals in comics, movies, television, and film. Currently,
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...
and western memorabilia are the main commercial enterprises; a July 2005
CNN
Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
article noted that Tombstone receives approximately 450,000 tourist visitors each year. This is about 300 tourists/year for each permanent resident. In contrast to its heyday, when it featured saloons open 24 hours and numerous houses of prostitution, Tombstone is now a staid community with few businesses open late. Tombstone and surrounding areas have a variety of lodging options, restaurants, and attractions. The town is located near other historic sites of interest, including Bisbee and the San Pedro Riparian area. Tombstone is a short drive away from Sierra Vista, which is considered the shopping hub of Cochise County.
East Allen Street is the center of Tombstone's tourist attractions, featuring three blocks of shaded boardwalks lined with gift shops, saloons, and eateries. Allen Street's historic district is closed to motor traffic from 3rd Street, the location of the city park and OK Corral, to 6th Street, where the Bird Cage Theatre is located. Additional sites of interest can be found throughout the city, even out on Highway 80, where Boothill Cemetery is found.
Performance events
Performance events help preserve the town's Wild West image and expose it to new visitors. The historic O.K. Corral has been preserved, but is now surrounded by a wall. Fremont Street (modern Arizona Highway 80), where portions of the gunfight took place, is open to the public.
Mannequin
A mannequin (sometimes spelled as manikin and also called a dummy, lay figure, or dress form) is a doll, often articulated, used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, window dressers and others, especially to display or fit clothing and show off dif ...
s are used to depict the location of the participants as recorded by Wyatt Earp. Visitors may pay to see a re-enactment of the gunfight. Helldorado Days, Tombstone's oldest festival, celebrates the community's wild days of the 1880s.
Conventions
On July 29th and July 30th 2023, Tombstone was transformed into "Blackwater", a city from the Western
Red Dead
''Red Dead'' is a series of Western-themed action-adventure games published by Rockstar Games. The first entry in the series, '' Red Dead Revolver'', was released on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in May 2004. Originally developed by Capcom, ''Red ...
Video Game Series created by
Rockstar Games
Rockstar Games, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in New York City. The company was established in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, using the assets Take-Two had previously acquired from BMG Interactive. Foun ...
. The transformation was a part of the "Tombstone Redemption" event which aimed to bring fans of the series together, providing the opportunity to meet the actors from the games, and engage in several events in the town.
Inside the Oriental Saloon, several actors including Rob Wiethoff ( John Marston), Benjamin Byron Davis (
Dutch van der Linde
''Red Dead Redemption 2'', a Western (genre), Western-themed action-adventure game developed and published by Rockstar Games, follows the story of Arthur Morgan, an outlaw and member of the Van der Linde gang. Led by Dutch van der Linde, the ga ...
, Gabriel Sloyer (Javier Escuella) signed autographs to hundreds of attendees.
The event was a success, and spawned another event, instead hosted in Black Hills, South Dakota. A third event is slated to return to Tombstone from October 31st - November 2nd, 2025.
World's largest rosebush
According to
Guinness
Guinness () is a stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at Guinness Brewery, St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in the 18th century. It is now owned by the British-based Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic bever ...
, the world's largest rosebush was planted in Tombstone in 1885 and still flourishes in the city's sunny climate. The Lady Banksia rose originated in Scotland. Mary Gee was the wife of mining engineer Henry Gee, who worked for the Vizina Mining Co. Mary's family sent the homesick bride a box of rooted cuttings from her home country. She planted one of the roses by the patio of the Vizina Mining Company's boarding house, the first adobe building in town, located at 4th and Toughnut Streets across from the later site of the railroad depot. Henry and she lived in the boarding house when they first arrived in Tombstone.
The building was later renamed the Cochise House Hotel, and from 1909 to 1936, it was known as the Arcade Hotel. By the 1930s, the rosebush had grown to shade the entire patio and became a popular site for tourists. The hotel was later renamed the Rose Tree Inn and then the Rose Tree Inn Museum. The museum curator tells visitors that all Banksia roses growing in the U.S. today are descendants of the Tombstone rose.
In 1940, the Lady Banksia rose covered about . , the rosebush covered more than of the roof and garden trellis of the inn, and has a circumference trunk. The rosebush is walled off, and the inn charges admission to view it.
A pair of huge rose "trees" of more than in circumference, also planted in the 1880s, shade a courtyard at Tombstone's historic Sacred Heart Church.
National Historic Landmark District
A National Historic Landmark District (NHLD) is a geographical area that has received recognition from the United States Government that the buildings, landscapes, cultural features and archaeological resources within it are of the highest signific ...
. The town's focus on tourism has threatened the town's designation as a National Historic Landmark District, a designation it earned in 1961 as "one of the best preserved specimens of the rugged
frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary.
Australia
The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, th ...
town of the 1870s and '80s". In 2004, the
National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
declared that Tombstone's historic designation was threatened, and asked the community to develop an appropriate
stewardship
Stewardship is a practice committed to ethical value that embodies the responsible planning and management of resources. The concepts of stewardship can be applied to the environment and nature, economics, health, places, property, information ...
program.
The National Park Service noted inappropriate alterations to the district included:
* Placing "historic" dates on new buildings
* Failing to distinguish new construction from historic structures
* Covering authentic historic elevations with inappropriate materials
* Replacing historic features instead of repairing them
* Replacing missing historic features with conjectural and unsubstantiated materials
* Building incompatible additions to existing historic structures and new incompatible buildings within the historic district
* Using illuminated signage, including blinking lights surrounding historic signs
* Installing hitching rails and Spanish tile-covered store porches when such architectural features never existed within Tombstone
Historical buildings include
Schieffelin Hall
Schieffelin Hall is a building from the American Old West in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, the largest standing adobe structure still existent in the United States southwest. There are other adobe structures, houses dating from 1000 in Taos and S ...
, the opera house built by Al Schieffelin in 1881, and the Cochise County Courthouse. The courthouse was largely unused and then vacant after the county seat was moved to Bisbee. An attempt was made to turn it into hotel in the 1940s, and when that failed it stood empty until 1955. The Tombstone Restoration Commission acquired the courthouse and developed it as a historical museum that opened in 1959. It features exhibits and thousands of artifacts documenting Tombstone's past.
The Crystal Palace Saloon, including its long mahogany bar, was rebuilt based on photographs of the original saloon was restored in May 1964 to its 1881 condition. This included large Victorian ceiling lamps and the inlaid‐patterned wood floor.
Geography and geology
The Tombstone District located at (31.715940, −110.064827) sits atop a
mesa
A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge, or hill, bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and standing distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks, such as shales, capped by a ...
Dragoon Mountains
The Dragoon Mountains is a range of mountains located in Cochise County, Arizona. The range is about long, running on an axis extending south-south east through Willcox. The name originates from the 3rd U.S. Cavalry Dragoons who battled the C ...
to the east. According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , all land.
The silver-bearing Tombstone Hills around the city are caused by a local intrusion of porphyry through a limestone capping. When actively mined, the silver vein of argentiferous
galena
Galena, also called lead glance, is the natural mineral form of lead(II) sulfide (PbS). It is the most important ore of lead and an important source of silver.
Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crysta ...
(silver-bearing lead ore) was large and well defined. The silver and lead were easily milled and smelted. The lead content sometimes was as much as 50% of the ore, and
assay
An assay is an investigative (analytic) procedure in laboratory medicine, mining, pharmacology, environmental biology and molecular biology for qualitatively assessing or quantitatively measuring the presence, amount, or functional activity ...
s proved the silver content ran as high as $105.00 per ton in 1881 dollars.
The underlying basement rocks are fine-grained Pinal schist, which is intruded by
gneiss
Gneiss (pronounced ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. This rock is formed under p ...
ic granite. The outcrop is in a small area south of the principal mines. The overlying
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...
quartzite
Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tecton ...
and
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
s rocks lie on an
unconformity
An unconformity is a buried erosional or non-depositional surface separating two rock masses or strata of different ages, indicating that sediment deposition was not continuous. In general, the older layer was exposed to erosion for an interval ...
with a total thickness ranging from , and contains of Mississippian Escabrosa limestone and the Naco Formation limestone of Pennsylvanian age in the upper formations.
Overlying the Naco limestone is an unconformable
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...
series of conglomerate, thick-bedded quartzites and
shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of Clay mineral, clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g., Kaolinite, kaolin, aluminium, Al2Silicon, Si2Oxygen, O5(hydroxide, OH)4) and tiny f ...
s, with two or three
lenses
A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
of soft, bluish-gray limestone. Into these formations intruded large bodies of quartz monzonite and by dikes of quartz monzonite- porphyry and
diorite
Diorite ( ) is an intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock formed by the slow cooling underground of magma (molten rock) that has a moderate content of silica and a relatively low content of alkali metals. It is Intermediate composition, inter ...
-porphyry. Structural
faulting
In geology, a fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock across which there has been significant displacement as a result of rock-mass movements. Large faults within Earth's crust result from the action of plate tectonic ...
occurs throughout the district, especially immediately south of Tombstone, where the
strata
In geology and related fields, a stratum (: strata) is a layer of Rock (geology), rock or sediment characterized by certain Lithology, lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by v ...
are closely folded.
Tombstone District ores have been produced geologically in three or more ways. They may have been formed in argentiferous (silver-bearing) lead sulfide containing spotty amounts of copper and zinc. These deposits are usually deeply oxidized and enriched by irregular replacement bodies along mineralized fissure zones and anticlinal rolls cut by
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...
and
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...
sedimentary
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock formed by the cementation of sediments—i.e. particles made of minerals (geological detritus) or organic matter (biological detritus)—that have been accumulated or deposited at Earth's surface. Sedime ...
formations. Ore bodies are often closely associated with newer cross-cutting intrusive dikes of laramide. Ore deposits were formed by
base metal
A base metal is a common and inexpensive metal, as opposed to a precious metal such as gold or silver. In numismatics, coins often derived their value from the precious metal content; however, base metals have also been used in coins in the past ...
mineralization occurring with oxidation found in fault and fracture zones in laramide volcanics and quartz latite porphyry intrusives. Silver ore also occurred in manganese oxides with some argentiferous deposits in lenticular or pipe-like replacement bodies along fracture and fault zones, usually in Pennsylvanian-Permian age Naco Group limestones.
Climate
Tombstone has a typical Arizona
semiarid climate
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''BSk''/''BSh'') with three basic seasons. Winter, from October to March, features mild to warm days and chilly nights, with minima falling to under on 28.4 nights, although snowfall is almost unknown, with the median being zero and the heaviest monthly fall being in January 1916, of which fell on January 16. The coldest temperature record in Tombstone has been on December 8, 1978.
The summer season from April to June is extremely dry and gradually heats up – the hottest temperature on record being on July 4, 1989 – before the monsoon season from July to September brings the heaviest rainfall, averaging out of an annual total of . The wettest month has been July 2008, when fell
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...
Tucson NOW Data /ref> and 15 days had at least of rainfall – though the record for the most such days in a month stands at 18, in July 1930. Since 1893, the wettest calendar year has been 1905, with and the driest was 1924, with .
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, 1,504 people, 694 households, and 419 families resided in the city. The population density was . The 839 housing units had an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 87.4% White, 0.6% African American, 1.0% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 8.2% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races; 24.1% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
Of the 694 households, 20.2% had children under 18 living with them, 47.6% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were not families. About 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.73.
In the city, the age distribution of the population was 19.3% under 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 19.9% from 25 to 44, 32.5% from 45 to 64, and 23.3% who were 65 or older. The median age was 49 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 91.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,571, and for a family was $33,750. Males had a median income of $26,923 versus $18,846 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year.
In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $15,447. About 13.0% of families and 17.4% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 22.6% of those under 18 and 13.1% of those 65 or over. In 2010, the total population was 1,380.
Education
Tombstone Unified School District serves Tombstone. The district schools in Tombstone are Walter J. Meyer Elementary School and Tombstone High School. Tombstone is within the Cochise Technology District, which assists in the development of career and technical education programs for high-school students.
Historic properties
Several properties in Tombstone have been included in the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. The following are images of some of these properties:
File:A090, OK Corral, Tombstone, Arizona, USA, 2004.jpg, O.K. Corral frontage on Allen Street
File:T-Inside Schiefflin Mine.jpg, Schieffelin's Mine
File:T-Schiefflin Hall.jpg, Schieffelin Hall
File:Longhorn Restaurant.jpg, Longhorn Restaurant
File:Tombstone Courthouse.jpg, Cochise County Courthouse
File:City Hall of Tombstone.JPG, City Hall
File:T-Long Nose Kates Saloon.jpg, Big Nose Kate's Saloon
File:T-Crystal Palace2.jpg, Crystal Palace
File:T-Bird Cage Theatre.jpg, Bird Cage Theatre
File:T-Boot Hill Graveyard.jpg, Entrance to Boothill Graveyard
File:Tombstone-Boot Hill Graveyard-Graves of Billy Clanton, and Frank and Tom McLaury 2.jpg, Graves of Billy Clanton, and Frank and Tom McLaury
File:Tombstone-Boothill Graveyard-China Mary-2.jpg, The grave of Sing Choy (China Mary) is one of the top tourist attractions in Tombstone to this day.
"China Mary"
During the 1880s, Tombstone had a population of about 500 people of Chinese descent. One of the most prominent members of Tombstone's Chinese community was Sing Choy (or Ah Chum), a woman popularly nicknamed " China Mary". Her role as a community leader included operating a store, controlling opium dens and gambling, and securing jobs for Chinese laborers in the White community.
She died in December 1906 from
heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood.
Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...
, and was buried in Tombstone's Boot Hill Cemetery. She was portrayed in an episode of the 1955 television series ''
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
''The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp'' is the first Western television series written for adults.Anna May Wong.