The most famous gunfight of the Nineteenth Century occurred in 1881 in Tombstone,
Arizona near the OK Corral. From the minutes after the shooting onward into, now, the
second quarter of the Twenty-First Century, no one was exactly sure of who shot who. It’s
certain that Dr. John Holliday shot both the McLaury brothers. Other than that, researchers
differ. Col. Charles Askins, Jr. was certain that Wyatt Earp had put bullets into all three of
the cowboys who died that day, while another historian concluded that the only living thing
Wyatt Earp hit in the gunfight was Tom McLaury’s horse.
If modern investigative tools and techniques had existed then, we’d know a lot more.
Historians argue whether Earp used a Colt or a Smith & Wesson in the incident, and if a
Colt, what barrel length. The only guns collected as evidence were those of the dead
cowboys. There was no trajectory reconstruction.
Now comes the book “Brothers of the Gun: Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and a Reckoning in
Tombstone” by Mark Lee Gardner. Published last year by Random House, it focuses on the
title topic, the relationship between the two most famous gunfighters who pulled triggers
that day.
I’ve studied this incident intensively. It is still relevant today. The dynamics of human
violence are eternal, and all that seems to differ are the weapons, the clothes the
participants wear, and the conveyances that brought them to the fight.
The Gardner book has some fascinating historical tidbits and insights. It is thoroughly
researched with 45 pages of supplemental notes.
A great read. Recommended!
