Gravestone of George Johnson who was unjustly hanged in 1882, in Arizona
Gravestone of George Johnson who was unjustly hanged in 1882, in Arizona.
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In 1882 George Johnson thought he had legitimately purchased a horse. But it turned out that he had unknowingly bought the animal from a man whom had stolen it. When Johnson took possession he was then accused of horse theft.
He was hanged despite his pleas that he had no prior knowledge the horse was stolen.
It wasn’t until after his death that it was determined he had told the truth.
He is buried in the Boothill Cemetery in Tombstone, Arizona
In 1882 George Johnson legitimately purchased a horse. At least he thought he had. Johnson unknowingly bought the horse from the man who stole it. When Johnson was found in possession he was accused of horse theft. He was hanged despite his pleas that he had no prior knowledge the horse was stolen.
It wasn't until after his death that it was determined he had told the truth. The grave marker on the left was photographed over sixty five years ago. The grave marker on the right is the current. The epitaphs on both markers serve as an exoneration of Johnson. he is buried in the Boothill Cemetery in Tombstone, Arizona.
And then there's the unfortunate George Johnson, remembered with this inscription:
"Here lies George Johnson hanged by mistake 1882. He was right we was wrong. But we strung him up and now he's gone."
"He was stopped — they thought he'd stolen a horse," Askey explains. "So they strung him up and found out later he'd legally purchased it. So, there's George."
The wooden grave markers fade and decay, so the town of Tombstone replaces them from time to time. The town also sells T-shirts, posters and mouse pads of the graveyard's most famous epitaph: "Here lies Lester Moore. Four slugs from a 44. No Les. No More."
But while Les Moore's tombstone is famous, he's not one of Boot Hill's most notorious inhabitants. That honor goes to Billy Clanton and Tom and Frank McLaury, killed at the gunfight at the O.K. Corral on Oct. 26, 1881, Askey says.
That shootout, of course, has been featured in dozens of movies and TV shows, from John Ford's My Darling Clementine in 1946 to the 1993 film Tombstone. The fight is re-enacted daily near the actual site in town, and it's what brought Steve Napolitan from California to the gunfighters' graves.
"It's kind of rewarding for me, 'cause it's kind of a fulfillment from all the stories, and seeing the movies, and now seeing the real place," Napolitan says.
Last year, 146,000 people visited Tombstone's Boot Hill — which makes it a big municipal moneymaker. Admission is free, but visitors start at the gift shop. Boot Hill is probably the only graveyard that sells souvenirs and fudge made on the premises.
And it may also be the only graveyard with its own song performed by Johnny Cash, "The Ballad of Boot Hill," immortalizing Les Moore's epitaph in song.
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