More "Household" Chores and Updating of the Blog

March 7, 2015

So today was another do nothing in particular day. Some projects around the Crusader and honestly more laundry.

Continuing:  January 12th through the 18th 2015
(Parked Huachuca City, AZ)

While in Tombstone we also took a walk through BootHill Graveyard.



Laid out as a burial plot called "The Tombstone Cemetery" in 1878 it was the burial place for the town's first pioneers. It was used as the towns main cemetery until the current "Tombstone Cemetery' opened at the end of  Allen Street in 1884.

 

The cemetery gives mute testimony to the hardships of Western Frontier Life. The people buried here were housewives, painted ladies, outlaws, gamblers, miners, business men, and women. In all it is believed 300 persons are buried here, 205 which are recorded.

 

By the 1920's it had fallen into ruin. It was restored from early burial records by Tombstone citizens in the late 1920's. At that time a Boy Scout Troop also set about to clean up the cemetery.

 

Opened in 1878 it was closed to new burials in 1884 with the exception of Emmett Crook Nunnelley in 1946. In the 1940's, he organized an effort to restore the cemetery to its original state. At that time steel markers, crosses, were place on the graves. He spent the last years of his life seeking to restore as much as could be restored of the cemetery. It was his request to be laid to rest there and the town complied.

 



The steel markers have now been replaced with new period correct ones. Below are a few pictures of cemetery.

 

Billy Clanton, Tom McLaury, Frank McLaury (Oct, 26, 1881
Murdered in the streets of Tombstone 1881

Newman Hayey
"Old Man Clanton"
Killed Aug 1881

Tex Howard                                                        Bill Delaney
Hanged 1884                                                      Hanged 1884



John Heath
Taken from County Jail & Lynched
by Bisbee mob in Tombstone
Feb 22, 1884
 

Six-Shooter Jim
1885
Shot by Burt Alvord

Mrs. Ah Lum (China Mary)
born in China died in Tombstone
Dec 6 1906 Aged 67



Killeen 1880
Shot by Frank Leslie

 

Unknown
There are many of these throughout the cemetery.

 

Boothill Grave Yard, in Tombstone, is Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

 

 

Tom had read about the Gunfighter Hall of Fame before we arrived and talked about taking the time to go through it. (Not something I was really interested in touring so I brought my Kindle and spent the time reading so he could take his time and enjoy the exhibits.) He said it was very interesting to learn about the various exhibits, including Billy the Kid's cowboy boots and how they were acquired, from the owner of the establishment. The owner had many stories to tell about the old west memorabilia in his museum. Tom said, you could tell he was really passionate about the old west and this made it interesting to listen to him.



 

Gunfighter Hall of Fame in Tombstone

 

 

Epitaph was founded May 1, 1880 and is the oldest continually published newspaper in Arizona. It has long been noted for its coverage of the infamous Gunfight at the OK Coral on Oct 26, 1881.





Tombstone Epitaph

 

 

One of our last stops in Tombstone was to take pictures of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church. We had planned on returning for Mass on Saturday evening, January 17, 2015 but sometimes circumstances jump in and change everything. That evening instead of getting ready to attend Mass we were anxiously waiting, with cellphone in hand, for updates on our daughter, Rachel, and the birth of our newest grandson, Nathaniel Thomas, born at 8:19pm Eastern Standard Time in Marquette, MI  (More information will be coming about this in future updates.)

 

Current Church building built in 1947

 

Front building, restored 1881 Church Rectory serves as Church Offices.
(sign in front identified this building)
Building behind: restored 1882 Church Building serves as Church Hall.
(could not see any sign but this looked like it was the church hall)

The Sacred Heart Catholic Church was dedicated on January 1, 1881. It was the first church building of any denomination in Tombstone.
The first building, a one and one-half story adobe building housed a rectory on the top floor and a church on the bottom.
In 1882 a second building was built to the house the church and the first one became solely the rectory.
The building of both these structures was spearheaded by Nellie Cashman. They served the community until 1947 when they were moved to their current location and a new church was constructed.

 

The Sacred Heart Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.