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N0KFQ > TODAY 26.10.14 15:02l 52 Lines 2434 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 38747_N0KFQ
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Subj: Today in History - Oct 26
Path: IW8PGT<IZ3LSV<IK6ZDE<F1OYP<PI8SNK<N0KFQ
Sent: 141026/1400Z 38747@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.60
Oct 26, 1881:
The Earps shoot it out at the OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona
After years of feuding and mounting tensions, on this day in
1881, the "law and order" Earps and the "cowboy" Clanton-McLaurys
engage in their world-famous shoot-out near the OK Corral in
Tombstone, Arizona, leaving three men dead and three more
wounded.
Both sides in the conflict were ostensibly looking for revenge
for what they perceived as malicious attacks and insults, but on
a larger level the conflict revolved around which side would
control the fate of Tombstone and Cochise County. That hot
Arizona day, the Earp brothers_Wyatt; Virgil, the town marshal;
and Morgan_along with their friend Doc Holliday, spotted a group
of cattle rustlers_Ike and Billy Clanton, Tom and Frank McLaury,
and Billy Claiborne, at the other end of Fremont Street, standing
in a vacant lot behind the OK Corral. Standing nearby was Cochise
County Sheriff John Behan, who rushed up the street to tell the
Earps that the Clantons and McLaurys were mostly unarmed and just
wanted to leave town peacefully. But the Earps ignored the
sheriff and moved ahead to confront their enemies. "You sons of
bitches," Wyatt Earp reportedly said, "you re looking for a fight
and now you can have it."
The question of which side actually drew their guns first is
still debated today, but it s believed that Virgil Earp pulled
out his revolver and shot Billy Clanton in the chest at
point-blank range, while Doc Holliday killed Tom McLaury with a
blast from his double-barreled shotgun. Wyatt Earp shot Frank
McLaury in the stomach, and the wounded man staggered out into
the street but managed to pull his gun and return fire.
Meanwhile, Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne ran for their lives.
The wounded Frank McLaury and Billy Clanton both managed to get
off several shots before collapsing, and Virgil, Morgan, and Doc
were all hit. But when the 30-second gunfight was over, there was
no doubt which side had triumphed: the Earps were bloodied but
alive, while Billy Clanton and Tom and Frank McLaury were dead or
dying. Sheriff Behan, who witnessed the entire shoot-out, charged
the Earps and Holliday with murder. However, a month later the
Tombstone justice of the peace found the men not guilty, ruling
"the defendants were fully justified in committing these
homicides."
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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