Earp, Wyatt (1848-1929), was a peace officer in the American West. He was best known for his role in the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona. Earp moved to Tombstone in 1879. He worked there as a stagecoach guard, card dealer, and deputy United States marshal. In 1881, a feud developed between Ike Clanton’s gang and three of the Earp brothers–Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan. Virgil was Tombstone’s marshal. The feud peaked in October when the Earps and their friend Doc Holliday shot to death three of Clanton’s gang at the O.K. Corral. The Earps said they were trying to make an arrest. Others said it was murder. Later, Wyatt worked as a saloonkeeper and prospector.
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was born in Monmouth, Illinois, on March 19, 1848. He grew up in Iowa and California. As a young man, Earp worked as a buffalo hunter. During the 1870’s, he was a police officer in Wichita and Dodge City in Kansas. He died on Jan. 13, 1929.
