Editing Doc Holliday (section)

{{Short description|Gambler, gunfighter, and dentist in the American West (1851–1887)}}
{{About|the American historical figure}}
{{Distinguish|text=the American baseball pitcher [[Roy Halladay]], nicknamed "Doc" in reference to Holliday}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| image = Doc Holliday in Prescott AZ.jpg
| caption = Autographed portrait, [[Prescott, Arizona]], c. 1879
| name = Doc Holliday
| birth_name = John Henry Holliday
| birth_date = August 14, 1851
| birth_place = [[Griffin, Georgia]], U.S.
| death_date  = {{death date and age|1887|11|8|1851|8|14}}
| death_place = [[Glenwood Springs, Colorado]], U.S.
| resting_place = Pioneer Cemetery (a.k.a. Linwood Cemetery), Glenwood Springs, Colorado, U.S.
| resting_place_coordinates = {{Coord|39|32|22|N|107|19|9|W|display=inline|type:landmark_region:US-CO|name=Pioneer Cemetery}}
| occupation = [[Dentistry|Dentist]], professional [[Gambling|gambler]], [[gunfighter]]
| education = [[Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery]]
| known_for = [[Gunfight at the O.K. Corral]]<br />[[Earp Vendetta Ride]]
| spouse= {{marriage|[[Big Nose Kate|"Big Nose" Kate Horony]] (common-law wife)|1877|1882}}
}}
{{O.K. Corral}}

'''John Henry Holliday''' (August 14, 1851<ref name=tanner/>{{rp|13}} – November 8, 1887), better known as '''Doc Holliday''', was an American [[dentistry|dentist]], [[gambling|gambler]], and [[gunfighter]] who was a close friend and associate of [[Sheriff|lawman]] [[Wyatt Earp]]. Holliday is best known for his role in the events surrounding and his participation in the [[gunfight at the O.K. Corral]] in [[Tombstone, Arizona]]. He developed a reputation as having killed more than a dozen men in various altercations, but modern researchers have concluded that, contrary to popular myth-making, Holliday killed only one to three men. Holliday's colorful life and character have been depicted in many books and portrayed by well-known actors in numerous movies and television series.<ref name=roberts2006/>{{rp|415}}

At age 20, Holliday earned a [[Dental degree|degree in dentistry]] from the [[Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery]]. He set up practice in Griffin, Georgia, but he was soon diagnosed with [[tuberculosis]], the same disease that had claimed his mother when he was 15 and his sister before his birth, having acquired it while tending to his mother's needs. Hoping the climate in the [[Southwestern United States|American Southwest]] would ease his symptoms, he moved to that region and became a gambler, which was recognized as a reputable profession in Arizona during that time period.<ref>{{cite web| title=Gambling in the Old West| url= http://www.historynet.com/gambling-in-the-old-west.htm |department=History Net |work=Wild West Magazine| access-date=April 13, 2015| date=June 12, 2006| url-status=live| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150424035923/http://www.historynet.com/gambling-in-the-old-west.htm| archive-date=April 24, 2015| df=mdy-all}}</ref> Over the next few years, he reportedly had several confrontations. He saved Wyatt Earp's life during a saloon confrontation in Texas, and they became friends. In 1879, he joined Earp in [[Las Vegas, New Mexico]], and then rode with him to [[Prescott, Arizona]],<ref name= "Roberts2011">{{cite book|first=Gary L. |last=Roberts|title=Doc Holliday: The Life and Legend|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4tOmXHr0cqEC&pg=RA1-PT29|year= 2011|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-1118130971 |page= 29}}</ref> and then Tombstone. While in Tombstone, local members of the outlaw [[Cochise County Cowboys]] repeatedly threatened him and spread rumors that he had robbed a [[stagecoach]]. On October 26, 1881, Holliday was deputized by Tombstone city marshal [[Virgil Earp]]. The lawmen attempted to disarm five members of the Cowboys near the O.K. Corral on the west side of town, which resulted in the famous shootout.

Following the Tombstone shootout, Virgil Earp was maimed by hidden assailants while [[Morgan Earp]] was killed. Unable to obtain justice in the courts, Wyatt Earp took matters into his own hands. As the recently appointed deputy U.S. marshal, Earp formally deputized Holliday, among others. As a federal posse, they [[Earp Vendetta Ride|pursued]] the outlaw Cowboys they believed were responsible. They found [[Frank Stilwell]] [[lying in wait]] as Virgil boarded a train for California, and Wyatt Earp killed him. The local sheriff issued a warrant for the arrest of five members of the federal posse, including Holliday. The federal posse killed three other Cowboys during late March and early April 1882, before they rode to the [[New Mexico Territory]]. Wyatt Earp learned of an extradition request for Holliday and arranged for Colorado Governor [[Frederick Walker Pitkin]] to deny Holliday's extradition. Holliday spent the few remaining years of his life in Colorado. He died of tuberculosis in his bed at the Hotel Glenwood at age 36.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news |title=A New Tombstone Sets the Record Straight for Doc Holliday |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/17/us/a-new-tombstone-sets-the-record-straight-for-doc-holliday.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=October 17, 2004 |access-date=August 8, 2019 |agency=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref>