Hysterical Journey To Historic Places

---

JIM BURNETT

The towns of Charleston and Contention City sprang into being as mill sites in support of the Tombstone mines. Most of the revenue generated from mining operations went back to Tombstone and Tombstone quickly became a wealthy and prosperous town; a town of churches and schools and men of substance. Charleston and Contention City were boom towns that quickly returned to dust once mining stopped. In its full boom Charleston roared loudest by far. Lawlessness among its celebrants flourished there and that is the way they liked it. Those folks from Charleston were a rowdy bunch. Jim Burnett found himself in the midst of those merry makers from the very beginning of that community. Somehow he had attained the lofty position of Justice of the Peace and he pursued it with a fair amount of zeal with the understanding that he would be compensated for his efforts on a percentage basis of fines collected. In the first month under that arrangement he submitted his fines to the county and was due a return of $380. Burnett was outraged when the county board refused to pay it. He never sent them another nickel, nor did he ever request county services of any kind. All fines thereafter he kept for himself and it was lucrative for him. He administered the law as he saw fit, issued all warrants, made the arrests, and held court wherever he wished to do so. It was an efficient system that seemed to fit the needs of the community. It lasted until the mines stopped producing ore to feed the mill. When Burnett left office he returned to his publicly funded but privately owned ranch on the San Pedro River. A neighboring ranch was owned by William C. Greene, who was ambitious, wealthy, and utterly ruthless. The two men, Burnett and Greene, despised one another. Both ranches had plenty of water, but Greene wanted it all so he built a dam across the river. Burnett took loud exception to the dam when the impounded water backed up onto his property and began to flood his pasture. To alleviate the problem Greene responded by hiring some Chinamen to build another dam further downstream. The original dam, no longer needed, could be destroyed. Any fool would realize in advance that the first dam would need to be destroyed before the second dam was built otherwise the water from the upstream dam would wash out the new dam. On June 24, 1897 the Chinamen blasted the original dam, the water rushed out in a flood, and work on the new dam could commence. On June 27 Greene’s daughters, Eva and Ella, and a neighboring friend, Katie Corcoran, got permission to cool off at a swimming hole nearby. The floodwaters had scoured that hole out though and it was now a much deeper pool. Katie hopped in and immediately sunk like a stone. Ella went in after her and tragically both little girls drowned. Greene focused the blame for the death of his daughter on Burnett thinking that Burnett had blasted the dam. On July 1 Greene rode into Tombstone, found Burnett speaking to John Montgomery in front of the O K Corral on Allen Street, and killed him dead as a hammer with three shots to the heart. Greene was taken into custody by Cochise County Sheriff Scott White and was held over for trial on charges of murder. On July 2 Greene was released on bond. Ultimately he bribed the jury and was set free. The photo shows Allen Street in front of the O K Corral where Burnett was murdered. Justice for Jim Burnett was served in much the same arrogant manner that he had administered it himself for many years.

---

Photos

JIM BURNETT
The shooting of Jim Burnett took place in Tombstone in front of the OK Corral on the north side of Allen Street about midway between 3rd and 4th streets.