An Afternoon in Tombstone, AZ

The legend is still alive in Tombstone, Arizona! We spent Friday afternoon roaming the streets. A highlight was the Old Courthouse Museum that lays out the details and background of the settlement of the town and, of course, the "Gunfight at the O. K. Corral."


In case you don't know how the name Tombstone was actually attached to the town, a miner named Ed Schieffelin from Pennsylvania gave the name to his silver mining claim in 1877 after being warned by soldiers that the only rocks he would find there would be his own tombstone. As more people came to find their fortunes and the development grew it became the town of Tombstone. Texas Kate still rides her horse down Main Street and the stagecoaches continue to carry passengers. Although the shops are filled with 21st century wares and the saloon menus are modern, if one concentrates and uses some imagination, it is possible to get a glimpse of the Earp brothers, etal.

And what visit to Tombstone would be complete without a visit to Boot Hill Cemetery. Below are some sad epitaphs that tell their own story.