Continued Lawlessness: Wyatt Earp & the OK Corral, 1881 (Edexcel GCSE History)
Revision Note
Author
Zoe WadeExpertise
History
Should we Believe the Story of Wyatt Earp and the Gunfight at the OK Corral? - Summary
According to the popular narrative, Wyatt Earp and his two brothers Virgil and Morgan Earp confronted a group of outlaws known as the Cowboys. A gunfight happened near the OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, on 26th October 1881. The gunfight resulted in several deaths and injuries. Wyatt Earp gained a reputation for being a legendary lawman. Historians question the accuracy of this narrative. There are many inconsistencies and conflicting accounts of the events leading up to the gunfight. Some argue that the gunfight was not a clear-cut case of lawmen versus outlaws. They state that personal and political rivalries in the town of Tombstone fuelled the confrontation. Many historians question Wyatt's integrity as a lawman. They argue that the Earps were worse than the Cowboys. Wyatt Earp also had a lot of power over the narrative of the event. Authors and directors created books and films about Earp's version of the gunfight. This created Wyatt Earp's reputation as a heroic sheriff fighting lawlessness. |
Who were the Earps?
Morgan, Virgil and Wyatt Earp were a close family of lawmen and business owners
Wyatt had an interesting history with the law
In May 1874, he was arrested in the cow town of Wichita for fighting
He then helped the deputy marshal keep control when a group of cowboys entered the town
The mayor of Wichita made Wyatt the deputy marshal of the town. He was later the marshal of Dodge City
The Earps arrived in Tombstone, Arizona on 1st December 1879
It was a small town just starting to grow due to mining
Rich mine owners and businessmen owned the town
In 1880, the rich businessmen made Wyatt Earp the deputy sheriff of Tombstone
Virgil was both deputy US Marshal and Tombstone's town marshal
Two ranching families called the Cowboys lived in Tombstone. These families were:
The Clantons
The McLaurys
Through 1881, the Earps clashed with the Cowboys
Accusations against the Earps | Accusations against the Clantons and the McLaurys |
|---|---|
Robbing stagecoaches. The Earps denied this accusation | Stealing horses and mules |
Cattle rustling and robbing stagecoaches |
Exam Tip
Students sometimes struggle to remember the names involved in the Gunfight at the OK Corral. In your revision, you could create a fact file for each family or draw a storyboard of the event.
What Happened to Wyatt Earp at the OK Corral?
Events After the Gunfight at the OK Corral
In 1882:
Virgil Earp was shot
Morgan Earp was killed
In response, Wyatt killed two men that he believed were responsible for Morgan's murder
Tombstone turned against the Earps
The residents hated the Earps' violent approach to law-keeping
Wyatt Earp disregarded the law and was a murderer
The residents forced the Earps to leave Tombstone
The Significance of Wyatt Earp and the OK Corral
Business and family rivalries could cause issues with law and order
The Earps, the Clantons and the McLaurys had brought violence into Tombstone
By 1881, the majority of settlements in the West were peaceful
Even in the worst cow towns, most residents felt safe if they avoided the saloons and gambling halls
As a result, the Gunfight at the OK Corral was a rare event
Law enforcement began to improve
Trains and telegraphs connected remote towns
Local and federal law enforcement communicated better with each other
Residents did not want violent law officials like the Earps
They began to demand for law-abiding officials
Exam Tip
A question could ask you to write a narrative account of the continuing attempts to establish law and order in the years c1876–c1895. A common misconception that students have is that a narrative account is a story. A narrative account answer should follow CHRONOLINK:
Put the sequence of events in chronological order
Link each section of the narrative to the next event that occurred. You should use linkage terms such as: 'as a consequence', 'this led to' or 'because'
Consider how law and order had transformed from developing settlements to the aftermath of the Gunfight at the OK Corral.
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