Carl Chapman
Arizona Realtor
Tombstone, in Cochise County, is probably the most famous and most glamorized mining town in America. Prospector Ed Schieffelin was told he would only find his tombstone in the “Apache-infested” San Pedro Valley. Thus he named his first silver claim Tombstone, and it became the name of the town. Tombstone is situated on a mesa between the Dragoon and Huachuca Mountains at an elevation of 4,540 feet. It incorporated in 1881. While the area later became notorious for saloons, gambling houses and the Earp-Clanton shoot-out, in the 1880s Tombstone was larger than Tucson and had become the most cultivated city in the West. Massive underground water in the mines and falling silver prices ended the boom in 1904. Having survived the Great Depression and removal of the County Seat to Bisbee, Tombstone in the 1930s became known as the “Town Too Tough To Die.” Tombstone's economy has changed drastically since its days as a mining town.
The town's colorful history is the key factor for steady growth. In 1962, the Department of the Interior designated Tombstone a Registered Historical Landmark. A restoration zone was established and a commission organized for the preservation of its landmarks.
