The OK Corral:
The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral unfolded in a brief 30-second shootout on Wednesday, October 26, 1881, in the town of Tombstone, within the Arizona Territory. This confrontation was the culmination of a longstanding feud between the Earp brothers, led by town Marshal Virgil Earp, and a loosely organized group of outlaws known as the Cowboys.
Considered the most famous shootout in the history of the American West, the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral often portrays Wyatt Earp as the central figure, yet this perspective is inaccurate. Virgil Earp, holding the positions of Tombstone city marshal and deputy U.S. marshal, led the confrontation. Assisted by Special Policeman Morgan Earp, Special Policeman Wyatt Earp, and temporary policeman Doc Holliday, Virgil played a pivotal role in the events of that historic day.
Opposing the Earps were the outlawed Cowboys: Joseph 'Ike' Isaac Clanton, William 'Billy' Harrison Clanton, Thomas 'Tom' McLaury, Frank McLaury, and William 'Billy' Floyd Claiborne. Shortly after the shooting commenced, Billy Clanton, Frank McLaury, and Tom McLaury lay dead, while Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne fled from the fight. Virgil Earp, Morgan Earp, and Doc Holliday sustained injuries in the confrontation. The images captured the final resting place of the three deceased cowboys in the Tombstone Boothill Graveyard, a subject that remains controversial to this day.
