FTJ, Entry 87: The Town Too Tough to Die

We are in Benson, AZ,  in a very nice RV park -- Butterfield RV Resort and Observatory. Apparently, the owners of this park were avid astronomers and built a special university grade observatory to view the heavens.

As the resort explains its observatory:

The primary instrument in the observatory is the Meade LX-200 GPS 16-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope.  This is a university-quality installation housed in a 15 foot diameter electrically operated dome. The building also includes a control room and work room. The observatory is managed and operated by our resident astronomer. 

Pretty cool, huh? 

Tonight we went to see the free observatory "show" and view the stars. We saw the crescent moon up super close, checked out Saturn and four of its moons, and viewed nebula and galaxies, one of which was 12.8 MILLION light years away. The resident astronomer was extremely knowledgeable, and the lecture and viewing were awesome.

What a unique experience to have in an RV park!

Images of Tombstone

Earlier today we visited the real reason we're here: Tombstone -- The Town Too Tough to Die. The town where legends lived...and often killed people in the streets. Where the Earp Brothers, Doc Holliday, Johnny Ringo, Ike Clanton, and a host of other well known and notorious Western names walked more than 130 years ago.  

Our first stop was Boot Hill. More than 250 graves are there, many with colorful epitaphs and explanations. "Residents" include pioneers, gunslingers, prostitutes, gamblers, miners -- a full range of victims and criminals. Because of the many violent deaths in the territory, the cemetery became known as Boot Hill, as in "they died with their boots on."

Love this inscription.

Billy Clanton, Tom McLaury, Frank McLaury -- all victims of the bloody O.K. Corral battle.

Some were just "shot," others were killed playing cards, still others by Indians, and some were just hanged. No explanation, just "hanged."

Or they were "lynched" -- hanged illegally.

Beau liked this sign...

Just beyond Boot Hill, we entered the old mining town of Tombstone, and were enthralled by the history. At one time, Tombstone was the fastest growing town between St. Louis and San Francisco (the stagecoach line), and there were more than 100 saloons and bordellos on just a few blocks.  Famous outlaws and Indians -- such as Cochise and his son-in-law Geronimo -- stalked the place, wreaking havoc on locals and visitors who came in by stagecoach.

We took a tour in one of these stagecoaches, dating from the 1880s. Very cool!

It was amazing to hear that these little coaches took nine people from St. Louis to San Francisco in 24 days. Passengers were allowed just one suitcase and one canteen of water. The trip was notoriously horrid. Mark Twain once took the stagecoach and when he arrived in San Fran, he supposedly said that he now knew what hell was like, in that he had just spent 24 days there.

Beau in front of our tour stagecoach. Nine people rode in and on this across the west at one time.
Can you imagine?

I think you know what this is!

Big Nose Kate's saloon was apparently pretty famous...

as was the Bird Cage Theatre.

We ate lunch at Longhorn's, once known as the Bucket of Blood.
Virgil Earp came here after the O.K. Corral and was shot in the elbow by
some scuzzball hiding on the second story of the building.

Both these pictures suffer from bad lighting! We are both better looking than this (we hope).

It was thrilling to walk the same streets that Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday walked.

Tombstone is home to the world's largest rosebush! Who knew?

 

Finally,  just a few images of Benson, the tiny town where we are staying. 

Had to take this photo in honor of Beau's sister Irene!

The territory goes on and on and on.

Loved this little colt.

Just a note about the weather -- it was 95 degrees today with a nice breeze. The dry heat was comfortable, just like they claim. ("But it's a dry heat.") I think we will see triple digits soon, however. On Tuesday we are heading across southern Arizona to Yuma.

We are praying the air conditioners hold up. Cross your fingers for us.

Tanks, Panky