TOMBSTONE ESTABLISHMENT AND LANDMARK DESCRIPTIONS

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THE CRYSTAL PALACE SALOON

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Originally known as the Golden Eagle Brewing Company this establishment was one of early Tombstone's first saloons occupying just a small lot of about 50 by 30 feet with the brewery being in another structure to the rear. Named after its builder, Benjamin Wehrfritz , the Wehrfritz Building was expanded by adding a second story to house the offices for such notables as U.S. Deputy Marshal Virgil Earp, attorney George W. Berry and Dr. George E. Goodfellow. It is even known that "Buckskin" Frank Leslie was a night watchman here for a short time.

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 The Golden Eagle Brewery was not hit as hard as others in Tombstone when the June 22, 1881 fire swept through town leaving in its wake a mass of destroyed buildings. During this fire, a large bucket brigade helped save this building from total destruction but fire was soon to be the demise of this once two story building when on May 26, 1882 it was totally destroyed as flames swept through and took with it all that was once the Golden Eagle Brewery.

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Swift action saw to it that the saloon was quickly rebuilt and the name was changed to the Crystal Palace Saloon. Imagine as you sit here and gaze around this fine establishment that in the center of the room was a goldfish pond "which spouts forth streams of pure water" as stated in the Tombstone Epitaph of July 23, 1882.

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The Crystal Palace Saloon soon became known as a fine dining establishment that not only served oysters and other delicacies in the lunchroom of the Palace, but also boasted of carrying the choicest brands of wines, liquors and cigars. Gambling and live music were also part of the action every night of the week.

SCHEIFFELIN HALL

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Schieffelin Hall is a building from the American Old West in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, the largest standing adobe structure still existent in the United States southwest. It was built in 1881 by Albert Schieffelin, brother of Tombstone founder Ed Schieffelin, and William Harwood as a first class opera house, theater, recital hall, and a meeting place for Tombstone citizens.

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King Solomon Lodge #5, one of five founding Masonic Lodges in Arizona, was organized upstairs in the Masonic Hall on March 14, 1881. Justice of the Peace Wells Spicer, who figured prominently in exonerating the Earps and Doc Holliday of murdering Cowboys during the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, was the first Master of the lodge.

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THE COUNTY COURTHOUSE

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Historic buildings have a special wisdom to them. Many will have tales within their walls, tales that beckon to be told. One such building whose story lives to be heard is the two-story 1882 Cochise County Courthouse in Tombstone Arizona.

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Cochise County has a long and exciting history. These 6,000 plus square miles once were a division of Pima County. This meant that to conduct any legal or county business, one would have the long journey to Tucson some 70 or so miles away. This would take up 2 long days riding from the Tombstone area. Tombstone was growing with every passing day. Miners, prospectors and claim stakers found their way to this silver rich area. Families would soon follow. Each day found another charge of Tombstone pioneers seeking their new homes. And in 1881, Cochise County was established and Tombstone named as the county seat.

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This brought the need for a building to be erected to serve as the official site for the business offices in the newly formed Cochise County. The large letters above the entry door announce the year. 1882. Cochise County Courthouse. 

The large double doors would have made an impressive entrance. Business transactions would take place daily. Perhaps the need to pay county taxes or record a deed would have required a trip to the corner of Third and Toughnut where one would enter through these grand doors. But, remember also that on a daily basis this building employed numerous men and perhaps a few women. They would have found themselves efficiently walking through the halls and climbing the stairways of this establishment. Their chairs would have wheeled across the floor as they reached for a book or a file leaving yet one more scar on the hard wood floors. The walls may have been steeped with the aroma of the gentlemen's cigar often smoked at the desk of the treasurer. Up the winding staircase where the banister is polished and the wood shines from the uncountable hands that have guided their way upstairs, the judge could be found in his chambers preparing for the days cases. The attorneys would be checking their paperwork one last time. The 2nd floor courtroom is readied. The trial will begin soon.

Downstairs and to the rear of the building and through a hallway the jailer walks toward the cells. The defendant awaiting the sound of the bars unlocking will soon be taken upstairs for trial. The barred compartments smell of the sweat of the many prisoners who would make this their abode, awaiting trial or transportation to the Territorial Prison in Yuma. The high windows afforded them little or no cool breeze in the hot Arizona summers. A trip upstairs may have been a welcome relief, as the detainee would be greeted with wide-open windows and a glimpse of the outside world. Perhaps a breath of fresh air filled with the aroma of the flowers growing in the nearby gardens would permeate this modest courtroom.

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Looking out to the west would bring to mind the account of the five men simultaneously hung for the crime they committed in Bisbee where three residents lost their life in the ensuing felony. The gallows would not be visible as they were erected only when needed. The prisoner was praying that this would not be one of those times.

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DUTCH ANNIE'S BROTHEL
 
Dutch Annie of Tombstone, Arizona, "Queen of the Red Light District", was renowned for her kindnesses, including giving poor miners their "grubstakes"--capital to get started. Over 1,000 mourning townsfolk followed her funeral procession to Boothill in 1883. 

Prostitution was legal in Tombstone as long as the proper city license for the business of "House of Ill Fame" was purchased. Revenue collected from the sale of these licenses was, for many years, the sole source of financial support for Tombstone's schools. Although considered to be a profession of sin, large contributions helped to build area churches, and during times of illness, the parlor houses not only housed the sick, but the girls provided their care. 

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BIRD CAGE THEATRE

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Opened on December 25, 1881 by William “Billy” Hutchinson and his wife Lottie. 

The Bird Cage Theater operated continuously – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – for the next 8 years. It gained a reputation as one of the wildest places in the country, prompting The New York Times to report in 1882 that "the Bird Cage Theatre is the wildest, wickedest night spot between Basin Street and the Barbary Coast". More than 120 bullet holes are evident throughout the building.

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Headlining some of the many famous entertainers were Lillian Russell, Eddie Foy, Sr., Lotta Crabtree and Lillie Langtry.  In 1882, Fatima allegedly performed her belly-dancing routine here as well.

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The basement poker room held the longest-running poker game in history.  Some of the participants were Doc Holliday, Bat Masterson, Diamond Jim Brady, and George Hearst.  Played continuously 24 hours a day for eight years, five months, and three days, legend has it that as much as 10 million dollars changed hands during the marathon game, with the house retaining 10 percent. 

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THE RUSS HOUSE

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In 1880, Nellie Cashman  moved to the new silver boomtown of Tombstone, just after the arrival of the Earp brothers.

In Tombstone, Nellie Cashman bought a boot and shoe store which she ran briefly before opening another restaurant, the Russ House. Named after the original in San Francisco, Nellie served 50-cent meals, advertising that "there are no cockroaches in my kitchen and the flour is clean."

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During her years in Tombstone, Nellie gained a reputation as an angel of Mercy, and became a prominent and influential citizen. A lifelong, devout Catholic, Nellie convinced the owners of the Crystal Palace Saloon (one of whom was Wyatt Earp) to allow Sunday church services there until she had helped raise enough funds for construction of the Sacred Heart Church.

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She was also active raising money for the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, the Miner's Hospital and amateur theatricals staged in Tombstone. She was famous for taking up collections to help those who had been injured or fallen on hard times, especially miners. Always the pragmatist, Nellie found the members of Tombstone's red-light district sympathetic and charitable to her causes, and relied on their generosity to help others in need.

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Nellie's community services in Tombstone continued to expand. She served as an officer of her church to hear the impromptu confessions of 2 of the 5 men who were to be hanged for the Bisbee Massacre of December 1883.

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THE EPITAPH BUILDING

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Newspapers were hardly beacons of objectivity. News was served up with equal helpings of politics and passion. When The Tombstone Epitaph was founded in 1880, John Philip Clum did not discuss the need to report the goings on in Tombstone without fear or favor, or about being “fair and balanced.” What mattered to Clum were Puritan ethics and the blessings of capitalism. Echoing John Winthrop’s words upon the founding of Massachusetts, Clum called the bustling silver camp “a city upon the hill.” The comment surely captured Clum’s belief that religion was necessary in the process of settling down. Clum said the new paper would be “a representative mining journal,” a vehicle for enhancing Tombstone’s founding industry.

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BIG NOSE KATE'S SALOON

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This popular saloon of today first got its start as the Grand Hotel in September, 1880. Declared as one of the finest hotels in the state, the hotel was luxuriously furnished, provided thick carpeting, and its walls were adorned with costly oil paintings. Providing 16 bedrooms, each with a "view," they were fitted with solid walnut furnishings, toilet stands, fine fixtures, and wallpaper. The lobby was equipped with three elegant chandeliers and more luxurious furnishings, while the kitchen boasted hot and cold running water and facilities to serve some 500 people in the span of a couple of hours. The hotel opened with an invitation only ball on September 9, 1880.

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Alas, the Grand Hotel's luxurious life would be a short one as she did not survive the devastating fire of May 25, 1882. Above ground, the only thing that remained standing were her seven graceful arches and her floor joists on the main level. The rest of the building collapsed into the basement.  

The building is home to Big Nose Kate's Saloon. A number of changes have been made to the original structure since it burned down and has been rebuilt. The bar area, that was originally housed in the basement of the old hotel, is now located on the main level. The saloon holds the Grand Hotel's original long bar, the only one of which survived the fire of 1882 and is still available for thirsty patrons. 

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THE ORIENTAL SALOON

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In 1880 the Village of Tombstone was bustling with frenzied miners, speculators, gamblers, and others who sought to make their fortunes. The Oriental Saloon opened on July 22 of that year, issuing in the advent of one of Tombstone's two fanciest bars. Only the exotic Crystal Palace would provide any measurable amount of competition.

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This would not be the last episode of violence associated with the Oriental. Hardly a week later One-Armed Kelly was shot by a man named McAllister. Prior to the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral Billy Clanton and Frank McLowery had patronized the establishment. In December 1881 City Marshal Virgil Earp was ambushed just outside of the Oriental. A year later Buckskin Frank Leslie escaped an attempted ambush by Billy Claiborne, surprising and killing his opponent by approaching him from a side exit. Perhaps these incidents help explain why Parsons early-on had characterized the Oriental as "a regular slaughterhouse."

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 This building on the corner of 5th and Allen Streets in Tombstone Arizona is just one of many buildings where whiskey and lead did not mix well.

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