Much of what we know about the colorful characters of Tombstone is thanks to George Whitwell Parsons.
An Easterner who was trained as a lawyer, Parsons went to the boomtown in 1879 to seek his fortune in mining.
He chronicled the big events (and small ones) in his journal, which he’d started in 1869. It’s a remarkable work, reporting on the Earp- Cow-boy troubles, the Street Fight, the Vendetta Ride, and everything else. It’s a bit slanted—Parsons was friends with the Earps and company—but still a fascinating look at the place.
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