Virgil Earp

Virgil Walter Earp (1843–1905) was the older brother of Wyatt Earp, and participated in the storied 1881 Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in the town of Tombstone, Arizona Territory.

He spent most his life in law enforcement, but he did try his hand at a variety of careers. He served with the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Virgil Earp in Southern Victory
Virgil Earp was a colonel of the United States militia based out of Tombstone, New Mexico. During the Second Mexican War, he led his regiment into a trap set jointly by the Confederate Trans-Mississippi Department under Jeb Stuart and an Apache band led by Geronimo. The militia was decimated. Earp was wounded and captured, and personally interrogated by Stuart.

Earp shared with Stuart his wish that his brother had come out west. His brother was the best poker player Earp had ever seen, and probably would not have fallen into the trap.