|
Sale 58
|
|
press UP arrow key to increase the zoom ratio.
press DOWN arrow key to decrease the zoom ratio.
press RIGHT arrow key to increase the zoom window size.
press LEFT arrow key to decrease the zoom window size.
|
|
Lot 118
Earp, Wyatt Berry Stapp & Nicholas Porter Earp. Autograph Endorsement Signed "W.S. Earp" as Constable, on the verso of a partly-printed Document Accomplished and Signed by "N.P. Earp," as Justice of the Peace, Lamar, Missouri, July 22, 1870, 2 pp, 5 x 8½ in. Edges are a bit frayed and some overall toning, else fine. A subpoena listing witnesses to be served in the case of the state vs. Theodore Edwards, Samuel Jones and Joseph Graham. On the recto, Justice of the Peace N.P. Earp (1813-1907), who was Wyatt Earp's father and the patriarch of the Earp clan, filled in the details and the names of the seven individuals ordered to appear before the Justice of the Peace, "to testify on the trial of a case." On the verso, Wyatt Earp reports that "I have served the within subpoena upon the within Names mentioned by Reading the same to them this July 22 1870.W.S. Earp, Const." The docket is also by Wyatt Earp : "State of Mo. / Edwards others / Justice fees 35 / constable fees 2.00." The constable fees took some thought; he marked through two attempts before settling on his fee. This document, signed by the young Earp and his father, is one of the earliest extant Wyatt Earp documents.
Less than a year after signing this document, Wyatt Earp (1848-1929) was the subject of two lawsuits and an arrest warrant for horse theft. He fled Missouri and all three cases were eventually dismissed. Whether or not Earp hunted buffalo between 1871-74 is difficult to determined, but he is known to have been arrested a couple of times for "keeping and being found in a house of ill-fame." As was often the case, the line was blurred between lawfulness and lawlessness, and in April 1875, Earp became a deputy in the Wichita marshall's office.
In addition to being a law officer at various times and places (including Dodge City 1878-79), Earp tried many occupations, including buffalo hunter, saloon keeper, gambler, real estate speculator, and miner. He gained fame for his part in the celebrated gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona on October 26, 1881, which pitted Wyatt, his brothers Virgil and Morgan and Doc Holliday against Ike Clanton and his gang, three of whom were killed during the fight. Earp's fame was helped along by Stuart N. Lake's romanticized version of his life, Wyatt Earp, Frontier Marshal (1931) and by various movies, TV shows, and other biographies. Through the years, Earp has evolved into an iconic figure of the American West.
Estimated Value $20,000 - 30,000.
Christie's, June 14, 2005, lot 284, realized $18,000.
|
| |
| Realized $14,950 |
|
