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John Henry Newman Wyatt North Biography & Facts

Newman Haynes Clanton (c. 1816 – August 13, 1881), also known as "Old Man" Clanton, was a cattle rancher and father of four sons, one of whom was killed during the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Two of his sons were involved in multiple conflicts in Cochise County, Arizona Territory including stagecoach robbery and cattle rustling. His son Ike Clanton was identified by one witness as a participant in the murder of Morgan Earp. Billy Clanton and Ike were both present at the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in which Billy was killed. "Old Man" Clanton was reportedly involved with stealing cattle from Mexican ranchers and re-selling them in the United States. Records indicate he participated in the Skeleton Canyon Massacre of Mexican smugglers. In retaliation, Mexican Rurales are reported to have ambushed and killed him and a crew of Cowboys in the Guadalupe Canyon Massacre. Early life Newman Clanton was born around 1816 in Davidson County, Tennessee, and married Mariah Sexton Kelso in Callaway County, Missouri on January 5, 1840. Newman and Mariah had five sons and two daughters: John Wesley, Phineas "Fin" Fay, Joseph "Ike" Isaac, Mary Elsie, Ester Ann, Peter Alonzo, and William "Billy" Harrison. Peter Alonzo died as an infant. Newman Clanton had been a slaveholder and planter in Tennessee before moving the family to Missouri. Over the next 20 years, he moved the family across the west and southwest. He tried gold mining in California before relocating the family to Dallas, Texas around 1853, where they ran a ranch for a time, and where their last two children, Ester and Alonzo were born. While in Texas, both Newman and his oldest son John enlisted in the Confederate Home Guard at the outbreak of the American Civil War. Newman was eventually released due to his age. At the end of the war in 1865, Newman moved the family to Arizona Territory and settled for a time near Fort Bowie near Willcox, Arizona. In 1866, they moved to San Buenaventura, California and after 26 years of marriage his wife Mariah died. In 1871, he moved the family to Port Hueneme, California. Ranching and smuggling in Cochise County Newman returned to the Arizona Territory in 1873 to the Gila River valley where he purchased or squatted on a large tract of land outside Camp Thomas, but his plans for a new town failed to materialize. He resumed cattle ranching and most of his children followed him to Arizona. During these many moves, the Clantons had repeated scrapes with the law. Both Newman and his oldest son John Wesley were convicted of desertion during the Civil War. They developed a reputation for theft and thuggery that followed them to Arizona. Newman Clanton sold the ranch near Camp Thomas in 1877, but Billy Clanton used to return often to visit the old homestead. Melvin Jones, whose father bought the ranch from Newman, wrote that Billy Clanton first met Frank and Tom McLaury at the ranch in 1878, at the time the McLaury brothers had located land for a cattle ranch in the Sulphur Springs Valley. After leaving Camp Thomas, Newman Clanton bought land on the San Pedro River, in Lewis Springs, where he built a large adobe house. The home became the headquarters of the Clanton Ranch. Phin obtained work as a freight driver. In the same year prospector Ed Schieffelin discovered silver in the hills east of the San Pedro River on a plateau known as Goose Flats, less than 15 miles (24 km) from the Clanton ranch. The family was very well situated to meet the demands for beef from the booming town of Tombstone. From its founding in March 1879, Tombstone grew from 100 residents to upwards of 15,000 citizens at its peak less than a decade later. The Tombstone Mill and Mining Company opened a stamping mill about 5 miles (8.0 km) from the Clanton's ranch in 1879 to take advantage of the ready water supply. Another mill soon followed and both began operations in 1879, The Clanton Ranch grew into a successful enterprise for many reasons. The Clantons also supplied beef to Bisbee and other nearby towns. During his testimony after the shootout at the O.K. Corral, Ike Clanton claimed to have raised and purchased about 700 head of cattle during the past year, and the Clanton ranch was one of the most profitable cattle ranches in that part of the country.: 193  However, the Clantons never registered a brand in either Cochise County or Pima County which was required to legally raise cattle.: 193  The Clantons were reputed to be among a group of outlaw Cowboys who crossed the border into Mexico where they stole cattle and re-sold them to the hungry miners in Cochise County. Tom and Frank McLaury worked with the rustlers buying and selling stolen cattle. The Mexican government at the time placed high tariffs on goods transported across the border, making smuggling a profitable enterprise. The large numbers of men required to work the fast-growing mines led to a rapid increase in the demand for beef cattle. Although some of the cattle ranching was legitimate, the Clantons stole cattle from across the nearby border in Mexico. Clanton and his sons brokered the sale of the stolen animals in the United States. Other ranchers in the area like that owned by Henry Hooker raised their own beef in the relatively dry area around Tombstone, but required far more manpower to the same number of animals and protect them from Indian attack in the time it took to raise them. Brothers John and Phin Clanton worked the family ranch. Phin was arrested several times for cattle rustling and once for robbery but was never convicted.: 46  During the early 1880s a number of outlaw Cowboys worked on the Clanton Ranch. These included Pony Diehl, "Curly Bill" Brocius, and Frank and Tom McLaury, until the McLaurys bought their own ranch. Johnny Ringo who had participated in the Mason County War, siding with Texas Ranger and gunman Scott Cooley, became associated with the Clantons. First Skeleton Canyon massacre In July 1879 several rustlers attacked a rancho in northern Sonora, Mexico, killing several of the inhabitants. Hunting the murderers, Mexican Rurales led by Commandant Francisco Neri illegally crossed the border into Arizona and were ambushed. The posse leader was executed. Johnny Ringo later said that he was among the murderers, who also included Old Man Clanton, his sons Ike and Billy, along with "Curly Bill" Brocius, Indian Charlie, brothers Frank and Tom McLaury, Jim Hughes, Rattlesnake Bill, Joe Hill, Charlie Snow, Jake Guage, and Charlie Thomas. Clanton left his sons to run the San Pedro River ranch and moved to a new ranch in the Animas Valley of New Mexico, only a mile from the U.S.–Mexican border. This ranch served as a staging ground for cross-border cattle raids into Sonora, Mexico. Second Skeleton Canyon massacre Two years later, in July 1881, "Curly Bill" learned that several Mexican smugglers carrying silver were heading to the United States through Skeleton Canyon. He along with Johnny Ringo, Old Man, Ike and Billy Clanton,.... Discover the John Henry Newman Wyatt North popular books. Find the top 100 most popular John Henry Newman Wyatt North books.