Virgil Earp
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Virgil Walter Earp (July 18, 1843 in Hartford, Kentucky - October 19, 1905 in Goldfield, Nevada) was one of the men involved in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Virgil Earp spent his life in law enforcement, although ironically it is his younger brother Wyatt Earp, who spent most of his life as a gambler, who is better known in popular history as a Western lawman.
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Early life
He was born July 18, 1843, the second son of Nicholas Earp and Virginia Ann Cooksey. A more complete family history for Virgil is given in the geneology section for Wyatt Earp.
In February 1860, while living in Pella, Iowa, 16 year-old Virgil eloped with Dutch immigrant Magdalena C. "Ellen" Rysdam (November 25, 1842 in Utrecht, Netherlands - May 3, 1910 in Cornelius, Oregon). They remained together for a year in spite of her parents' (Gerrit Rysdam and Magdalena Catrina Van Velzen from Utrecht) disapproval of her choice.
On September 21, 1861, 18 year-old Virgil enlisted in the Union Army for the American Civil War, serving with the 83rd Illinois Infantry July 26, 1862-June 24, 1865. His enlistment was to become the last time Virgil and Ellen met each other as husband and wife. The marriage resulted in the birth of the only known child of Virgil, Nellie Jane Earp (January 7, 1862 - June 17, 1930). Virgil left for the Civil War when his baby daughter was just 2 weeks old.
In the Summer 1863, Ellen was told incorrectly that Virgil had died. She left Pella with her parents and daughter. She had moved to Oregon and remarried twice by the time she and their daughter next met Virgil, in 1899, 37 years after they had seen each other last. There is a report that Virgil hadn't known he had a daughter, but this appears to be an inference from his earlier enlistment date, which is not the same as the time he left for service.
Earp received his discharge from the military on June 26, 1865. Finding his wife and family had left Pella, Earp decided to head to California to meet up with the rest of the Earps. He married his second wife, Rosella Drag[g]oo (b. 1853 in France), on August 28, 1870 in Lamar, Missouri. After three years of marriage, he left. Nothing is known about the outcome of the marriage.
In 1874, Earp married for a third time, this time to Alvira "Allie" Packingham Sullivan (b. 1849 in Council Bluffs, Iowa - d. 1947 in Los Angeles, California).
During his life Virgil worked at many jobs. He farmed, work on rail construction in Wyoming, drove a stagecoach, worked in a sawmill (in Prescott, A.T.), drove a mail route, and later in life, tried his hand as prospector.
Virgil spent some time in Dodge City in 1877 with his brother Wyatt, though it is not certain if Virgil ever held any law enforcement position in Dodge. From Dodge, Virgil and his wife moved to Prescott, the capital of Arizona Territory. There, in October 1877, Virgil Earp was deputized by Yavapai County Sheriff Ed Bowers during a street gunfight. In 1878, Virgil served in Prescott as a village night watchman for a couple of months and was elected a constable in Prescott.
Tombstone
Virgil was appointed Deputy U.S. Marshal for the Arizona Territory in November 27, 1879, just before he traveled with brother Wyatt Earp to Tombstone from Prescott. Evidently Virgil was intended to represent federal law in that part of the territory (Tombstone was then only a small town and mining camp of a few hundred people).
On October 30, 1880, Virgil became acting town-marshal of Tombstone after town-marshal Fred White was shot by Curly Bill (see William Brocius). Virgil was not present at the White shooting, though early historians have erroneously reported this (Brocius was arrested by deputy county sheriff Wyatt Earp, assisted by brother Morgan Earp). With the town-marshal appointment, Virgil held both a federal law enforcement position, as well as the top local law enforcement position for the town of Tombstone. However, Virgil held the latter job for less than two weeks before being replaced by Ben Sippy in a special election in which Virgil was narrowly defeated. Sippy won re-election when Tombstone became a city in January, 1881 (Virgil didn't run in this second election, though several historians have erroneously reported this also). However, when Sippy skipped town on about $3000 of bad debt in June, 1881, Virgil was finally appointed by Tombstone Mayor Clum as replacement for the city-marshal post. Virgil's appointment as a no-nonsense enforcer was partly in response to the lawless looting which occurred in the wake of a Tombstone fire of that month.
As city marshal (chief of police), it was Virgil's job to enforce local ordinances such as those against carrying open or concealed weapons in town. It was Virgil's attempt (along with new deputy Morgan Earp (in position 9 days) and temporary deputized citizens Wyatt Earp and J.H. "Doc" Holliday) to disarm Frank McLaury and Billy Clanton, which led to the fight and deaths near the O.K. Corral.
During the gunfight, Virgil Earp was shot in the calf of the leg. Three days after the O.K. Corral gunfight, the city council suspended Virgil as police chief, pending outcome of the shooting investigations. Virgil was eventually exonerated of wrongdoing, but his reputation suffered.
On December 28, 1881, Virgil was ambushed on Allen Street in Tombstone by unknown assailants, usually assumed to be family or confederates of the men who died at the O.K. Corral fight. Virgil was hit in the back and his left arm by buckshot from several shotgun blasts. The arm would be permanently crippled as a result of the surgical removal of 5 and 1/2 inches of shattered humerus bone in wound treatment. While being examined by his doctors, the severely wounded Virgil (according to the daily diary of a witness) managed to tell his wife, "Nevermind, I've got one arm left to hug you with." This remains one of the more gallant quotes of the Old West.
On learning of Virgil's wounds, which were initially thought probably fatal, territorial U.S. Marshal C.P. Dake gave Virgil's Deputy U.S. Marshal position to Wyatt Earp.
On March 20, 1882, two days after Virgil's younger brother Morgan Earp was killed in a second ambush by unknown assailants, the invalid Virgil and his wife Allie left Tombstone for Colton, California. Virgil left Tombstone to Colton the day after Morgan's body was sent to California. Virgil was escorted for protection by brothers Wyatt and Warren, as well as Doc Holliday and several other friends. He would later state that he had to be carried to the train, having spent more than two months in bed. His wife Allie had to wear his pistol belt during the journey, so the weapon would be available to Virgil if he needed it.
Later life
Virgil spent the rest of his life in various law enforcement jobs, despite effective use of only one of his arms. On return to the new city of Colton, CA, he eventually recovered and became that city's first city-marshal.
He died on October 19, 1905 of pneumonia in Goldfield, Nevada. He was serving as the Deputy Sheriff in Esmaralda County, Nevada at the time. He was buried at Riverview Cemetery, 0300 SW Taylors Ferry Rd., Portland, Oregon.