#17 Visit Tombstone, AZ

Jordan and I have been talking about going to Tombstone, AZ for awhile and on Saturday morning we got up early and drove the three hours to Tombstone. 

Once we got there we were greeted by cowboys dressed up in their old west outfits showing us what to see and when events were.  

Our first stop was the old courthouse. 

"In 1882 the Cochise County Courthouse was built at a cost of around $45,000. It provided offices for the county sheriff, recorder, treasurer, board of supervisors, and included a well-built jail. The courthouse was a comfortable symbol of law and stability in these turbulent times."

 We then walked down to see the bird cage theater.

  

"It was a saloon, theater, gambling hall and brothel. Legend has it that no self-respecting woman in town would even walk on the same side of the street as the Bird Cage Theatre. It opened its doors on Christmas Day 1881 and ran 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year until closing its doors in 1889. In 1882, The New York Times reported, "the Bird Cage Theatre is the wildest, wickedest night spot between Basin Street and the Barbary Coast." Evidence of this can still be seen in the 140 supposed bullet holes that have been found in the walls and ceiling. The Bird Cage was named for the cage style crib compartments suspended from the ceiling. It was in these "Bird Cages" that the "ladies of the evening" entertained their customers."

They say that Tombstone is one of the most haunted places in the United States and I don't doubt it.  Walking down main street there are signs everywhere showing where people were shot and killed.

One of things that I liked the most about visiting Tombstone was that everyone was dressed up in old fashioned western wear.  Locals and tourists a like.  It felt like going back in time. 

 "The most famous event in Tombstone's history was the famed Gunfight at the OK Corral, which didn't actually happen at the corral, but in a vacant lot on Fremont Street. On October 26, 1881, members of the "Cowboys" had a run-in with Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan Earp with help from Wyatt's friend Doc Holliday. 24 seconds and 30 shots later, Billy Clanton, Tom and Frank McLaury were mortally wounded. In many peoples opinion, it was this one event that has kept Tombstone alive for all these years."

Tombstone was expensive and everything cost money. From touring old buildings to seeing a reenactment of the shootout at the OK corral. We did decide that it was worth it to see the actual spot where the shootout accrued.  It was very interesting.

 
On our home we stopped at the Boothill graveyard.

 

"Tombstone is also the home of Boothill Graveyard. Boothill began in 1879 and was used until 1884.  Legend has it that Boothill was named for the fact that many residents there died violent or unexpected deaths and were buried with their boots on. Many famous Tombstone folks lie there including the victims of the 1881 Shootout on Fremont Street between the Earps and the Cowboys."

 

On the drive home Jordan and I were talking about what a sad and difficult life it must have been for those who lived in Tombstone during that time.  Prostitution, drugs and murder were accepted and a part of their daily lives.  I makes me appreciate my family heritage and the righteous choices that were made and have been passed down from generation to generation.

 

We left Tombstone early in order to make it back home in time to watch Boise State play their season opening game against Georgia. 

 

We went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner.  The TV playing the Boise State game didn't have sound so we watched the first half of the game at the restaurant and then came home to watch the rest of the game.

 

   Boise State won 35-21. 

Go Broncos!!