Wyatt Earp Net Worth
Wyatt Earp’s net worth is $80,000. Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – January 13, 1929) was a lawman in the American West. He worked in towns like Dodge City, Deadwood, and Tombstone. Earp is best known for the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, where lawmen killed three outlaws from the Cochise County Cowboys. Although Wyatt is often seen as the hero of the fight, his brother Virgil is in charge.
Virgil was the Deputy U.S. Marshal and Tombstone City Marshal with more experience in law enforcement. He decided to enforce a city rule that banned carrying guns in town. Wyatt was only a temporary assistant marshal.
In 1874, Earp moved to Wichita, Kansas. His common-law wife reportedly ran a brothel there. Wyatt was arrested a few times for being involved with brothels and may have even been a pimp. Despite this, he became part of the Wichita police.
He built a good reputation but lost his job after fighting with a political rival. Afterward, he went to Dodge City to join his brother James. There, Wyatt worked as an assistant city marshal. His brother’s wife and his own common-law wife ran another brothel. In 1878, while tracking an outlaw named Dave Rudabaugh in Texas, Wyatt met Doc Holliday. Wyatt later said Doc saved his life.
Wyatt moved often, following new opportunities. In 1879, he left Dodge and went to Tombstone with his brothers, James and Virgil. Tombstone was booming because of silver. The Earps clashed with a gang called the “Cowboys,” including Tom and Frank McLaury and Ike and Billy Clanton. The Cowboys often threatened the Earps.
Their feud led to the famous O.K. Corral shootout on October 26, 1881. Wyatt, Virgil, Morgan, and Doc Holliday killed three Cowboys that day. Soon after, Virgil was ambushed and injured for life. Morgan was murdered. Wyatt, his brother Warren, Doc, and others formed a posse.
They hunted down and killed three men they believed were responsible. Wyatt was never hurt in any of these fights, unlike his brothers and Doc, which added to his legend later.
After Tombstone, Wyatt went to San Francisco. There, he reunited with Josephine Marcus, and they lived as husband and wife. They followed the gold rush to Eagle City, Idaho, where they owned a saloon and mining interests.
Back in San Francisco, Wyatt raced horses. His reputation took a hit when he refereed a boxing match between Fitzsimmons and Sharkey. Many people believed he fixed the fight. In 1899, Wyatt and Josephine joined the Nome Gold Rush in Alaska.
They opened a saloon called the Dexter and made a lot of money. But Josephine loved to gamble, and they lost much of it. Around 1911, Wyatt worked mining claims in Vidal, California. He and Josephine spent summers in Los Angeles, renting small homes. In his later years, Wyatt became friends with early Hollywood actors. He tried to get his life story turned into a movie. He was briefly shown in the 1923 film Wild Bill Hickok.
Wyatt Earp died on January 13, 1929. During his life, he was known as a lawman, gunfighter, and boxing referee. His image changed after his death when a book called Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal by Stuart N. Lake was published in 1931.
The book made him famous as a fearless lawman. Since then, movies, TV shows, and books have made him a legend of the Old West. Even today, people still debate his true story. Some admire him, while others criticize him
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Personal Life
In late 1869, Wyatt Earp started courting Urilla Sutherland. She was 20 years old, and her parents, William and Permelia Sutherland, ran the Exchange Hotel in Lamar, Missouri. Wyatt and Urilla got married on January 10, 1870. Wyatt’s father performed the ceremony.
In August of that year, Wyatt bought a piece of land on the edge of town for $50. He built a house there. Sadly, Urilla became sick with typhoid fever and died while pregnant with their first child. In November, Wyatt sold the land and house for $75.
Controversies
After Urilla’s death, Wyatt Earp’s life spiraled downward, and he faced several legal issues. On March 14, 1871, Barton County sued him for $200 (about $4,500 today). His father was one of his sureties. Wyatt had collected license fees in Lamar, meant to fund local schools, but he didn’t hand the money over to the county.
On March 28, 1871, authorities charged Wyatt, Edward Kennedy, and John Shown with stealing two horses from William Keys in Indian Territory. Each horse was worth $100. Just three days later, on March 31, James Cromwell filed a lawsuit against Wyatt. He claimed Wyatt had altered a judgment by changing the dollar amount and kept the extra money for himself. To recover the funds, the court seized Cromwell’s mowing machine and sold it for $38. Cromwell said Wyatt still owed him $75, the machine’s estimated value.
On April 6, Deputy U.S. Marshal J.G. Owens arrested Wyatt for horse theft. Commissioner James Churchill arraigned him on April 14 and set his bail at $500. The court ordered Wyatt to appear at a hearing. Before the hearing, Wyatt sold his property, escaped from jail through the roof, and fled to Peoria, Illinois.
On May 15, the court indicted Wyatt, Kennedy, and Shown. Anna Shown, John’s wife, claimed Wyatt and Kennedy got her husband drunk and threatened to kill him if he didn’t help steal the horses. On June 5, the court acquitted Kennedy, but the case against Wyatt and Shown continued. The new constable reported that Wyatt had fled the state and left his home, making it impossible to serve him legal papers.
