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Facts and Events
| Name |
Virgil Walter Earp |
| Gender |
Male |
| Birth? |
18 Jul 1843 |
Hartford, Ohio County, Kentucky |
| Census[1] |
1850 |
Marion County, Iowa |
| Census[2] |
1860 |
Marion County, Iowa |
| Census[3] |
1870 |
Barton County, Missouri |
| Census[4] |
1880 |
Tombstone, Cochise County, Arizona |
| Death? |
25 Oct 1905 |
Goldfield, Esmeralda County, Nevada |
| Burial? |
|
River View Cemetery, Portland, Oregon |
| Reference Number |
|
Q931824 (Wikidata) |
- the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia
Virgil Walter Earp (July 18, 1843 – October 19, 1905) was both deputy U.S. Marshal and Tombstone, Arizona City Marshal when he led his younger brothers Wyatt and Morgan, and Doc Holliday in a confrontation with outlaw Cowboys at the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral on October 26, 1881. They killed brothers Tom and Frank McLaury and Billy Clanton. All three Earp brothers had been the target of repeated death threats made by the Cowboys who were upset by the Earps' interference in their illegal activities. All four lawmen were charged with murder by Ike Clanton, who had run from the gunfight. During a month-long preliminary hearing, Judge Wells Spicer exonerated the men, concluding they had been performing their duty.
But two months later on December 28, friends of the slain outlaws retaliated, ambushing Virgil. They shot him in the back, hitting him with three shotgun rounds, shattering his left arm and leaving him permanently maimed. The Cowboys suspected were let off for lack of evidence.[1] His brother Morgan Earp was assassinated in March 1882. Charges against those suspected were dismissed on a technicality.[2] Wyatt Earp, appointed as deputy U.S. Marshal to replace Virgil, concluded he could not rely on civil justice and decided to take matters into his own hands.[2][3] Wyatt assembled a federal posse that included their brother Warren Earp and set out on a vendetta to kill those they felt were responsible. Virgil left Tombstone to recuperate from his wounds in Colton, California where his parents lived.
Virgil married before he left to serve in the Union Army during the American Civil War. When he returned, his wife and child had left. He held a variety of other jobs throughout his life, though he primarily worked in law enforcement. His younger brother Wyatt, who spent most of his life as a gambler, became better known as a lawman because of writer Stuart N. Lake's fictionalized 1931 biography and later portrayals of him in movies and fiction as Old West's "toughest and deadliest gunmen of his day."[4][5] In 1898, Virgil learned that his first wife Ellen Rysdam and their daughter were living in Oregon and reestablished contact with them. After suffering from pneumonia for six months, Virgil died on October 19, 1905.
Civil War Record
Civil War service record:
- Enlisted 21 Aug 1862 in Co. C, 83d Illinois Infantry.
- Mustered out 26 Jun 1865 at Memphis, Tennessee.
References
- ↑ United States. 1850 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication M432).
1850 U.S. Census, Lake Prairie Twp, Marion County, Iowa (Roll M432 187), p. 290A; Dwelling 150, Family 156.
Earp N.P. 37 [abt 1813] M North Carolina Cooper & Farmer
Earp Virginia A. 29 [abt 1821] F Kentucky
Earp Newton J. 13 [abt 1837] M Kentucky [attended school]
Earp James C. 7 [abt 1843] M Kentucky [attended school]
Earp Virgil W. 6 [abt 1844] M Kentucky [attended school]
Earp Martha E. 5 [abt 1845] F Illinois
Earp Wyatt B. 2 [abt 1848] M Illinois
- ↑ United States. 1860 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication M653).
1860 U.S. Census, Pella, Marion County, Iowa (Roll M653 335), p. 230; Dwelling 1671, Family 1572.
Earp Nicolas P. 45 [abt 1815] M North Carolina Farmer (re=$800; pe=$200)
Earp Virginia A. 38 [abt 1822] F Kentucky
Earp James C. 19 [abt 1841] M Kentucky Farmer [attended school]
Earp Virgil W. 17 [abt 1843] M Kentucky Farmer [attended school]
Earp Wyatt S. 12 [abt 1848] M Illinois [attended school]
Earp Morgan L. 9 [abt 1851] M Iowa [attended school]
Earp Warren 5 [abt 1855] M Iowa
Earp Virginia A. 2 [abt 1858] F Illinois
Davis Lucinda 17 [abt 1843] F Kentucky [attended school]
- ↑ United States. 1870 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publications M593 and T132).
1870 U.S. Census, Lamar, Barton County, Missouri (Roll M593 757); p. 830B.
Dwelling 212, Family 212
Earp Nicholas 58 [abt 1812] M W Grocer (re=$1,200; pe=$425) North Carolina
Earp Virginia 50 [abt 1820] F W Keeping house Kentucky
Earp Warren 13 [abt 1857] M W At home Iowa
Earp Adelia 9 [abt 1861] F W Iowa
Earp Vergil 26 [abt 1844] M W Grocer Kentucky
Earp Rosa 17 [abt 1853] F W At home "France"
- ↑ United States. 1880 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication T9).
1880 U.S. Census, Tombstone Village, Cochise County, Arizona (Roll 36), ED 2, p. 163C; Dwelling 119; Family 165.
[among more than 80 people all apparently living in Holly Levine's hotel & saloon]
Earp Virgil W. W M 36 [abt 1844] Married Farmer Kentucky Virginia Kentucky
Earp Alley W F 22 [abt 1858] Wife Married Keeping House Nebraska Ireland [blank]
Earp Wyatt S. W M 32 [abt 1848] Brother Single Farmer Illinois Virginia Kentucky
Earp Mattie W F 22 [abt 1858] Wife Married Keeping House Wisconsin [blank] [blank]
Earp James C. W M 39 [abt 1841] Brother Married Saloon Keeper Kentucky Virginia Kentucky
Earp Bessie W F 36 [abt 1844] Wife Married Keeping House Missouri [blank] [blank]
Earp Hattie W F 16 [abt 1864] Daughter Single At Home Iowa Kentucky Missouri
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