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In Tombstone, Ariz., the ricochets of the O.K. Corral What has made the town what it is today? Cowboys, lawmen, gunfights and ... roses.
Boothill Graveyard in Tombstone, Ariz, a town made famous by Wyatt Earp and the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. In the 1881 shootout, which lasted roughly 30 seconds, Earp, his brothers Virgil and Morgan, and friend Doc Holliday killed three cowboys — Billy Clanton and brothers Frank and Tom McLaury — who are buried in the graveyard.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
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A covered wagon takes visitors for a ride along Allen Street. About 70 miles south of Tucson, Tombstone began as a silver mining boomtown. “Tombstone was open 24 hours a day,” says local historian and author Don Taylor. “The miners worked rotating 10-hour shifts; everything had to be open when they got off, including banks.”
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Scott Chase, right, and daughter Kiara, 6, take a Gunfighter and Ghost Tour. At the O.K. Corral, visitors can see a dramatic production about the famous gunfight.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Butch Shimer of Barstow, Calif., center, during the town’s Wyatt Earp Days festival in May. The event features mock gunfights and a costume contest, among other activities.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Paul Rose of Mesa, Ariz., portrays Morgan Earp as he and other members of the Arizona Gunfighters reenact the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral during Wyatt Earp Days. The three-day event is one of several such festival weekends in the town each year.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Stephen Keith, left, plays Doc Holliday, in a production he wrote, directed and produced at the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, with, from left, Aaron Gain (Frank McLaury), Craig Oldfather (Wyatt Earp) and Jim Morris (Morgan Earp). “We have founded our entire economy on a 30-second triple homicide,” Keith says. “Without the gunfight, this town would be rubble in the desert with a pretty name.”
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Cinnamon Bock during Wyatt Earp Days. In the 19th century, with roughly 25 mines, booming Tombstone attracted hordes of people who sought to make a swift and easy fortune.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
An 1881 portrait of Wyatt Earp, who lived in Tombstone for little more than two years but whose name is forever linked to the town.
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An 1881 portrait of Doc Holliday. After the gunfight, he reportedly returned ashen-faced to his room and sat on the edge of his bed. “It was awful! Just awful!” he exclaimed. And he wept.
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Today, the Bird Cage Theatre, which opened in December 1881, retains its atmospheric, internal mustiness. For all its historical attractions, though, Tombstone is no Colonial Williamsburg: The saloon where Wyatt Earp dealt cards is now a clothing store, and the billiards hall where one of his brothers was shot dead is a souvenir shop.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Ronald Cruz, 10, adjusts his hat as he and others with the Shadow Riders group pose for a photograph during Wyatt Earp Days.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Rick Taylor of Harrah, Okla., performs with the Guthrie Gunfighters during Wyatt Earp Days. “One of the most famous gunfights in the world took place right here, and we have the chance to stand on that street and do gunfights,” says Bill Kenney, another member of the group. “It’s pretty much the Super Bowl for Old West reenactors.”
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Actors, from left, Aaron Gain, Samantha Etter, Tony Dangelo and Lawerence Rowe prepare for a performance at the O.K. Corral, which a museum, a twice-daily gunfight show and a Vincent Price-narrated history presentation.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
A statue of Wyatt Earp stands in town. His home is now a museum and art gallery.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Tombstone has about 1,500 residents today. One couple, Lynda and Dusty Knox, from Britain, moved to town after visiting, converting an old brothel into the Tombstone Bordello bed-and-breakfast, which they have run since 2004. “I’ve had people come here, take one look around, not understand what all the fuss is about, and leave,” says Lynda Knox. “I’ve had others who’ll come and stay for weeks.”
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Besides the gunfight, Tombstone is home to what’s billed as the world’s largest rose tree, planted in 1885. Climbing up supports and spreading over elevated trellises, it extends across more than 9,000 square feet.
Sam Scholes
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PHOTO BY SAM SCHOLES
Eric Fennell, center, leads a tour of the Good Enough Mine to Howard Zlamal of Tucson and others.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Todd Whatley, 41, and Samantha Avery, 40, are married by Jay Clark, center, with Kenneth Stuart and Kate Perkins as witnesses.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
A barn dance at the Apache Spirit Ranch on the outskirts of Tombstone.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
The exterior of the barn. Designed to look like an Old West town, the ranch has a “street” with a bank, a jail, a hotel and 14 other locations, each of which reveals itself, on closer inspection, as a perfectly appointed room.
Matt McClain
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FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
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