Home > Tombstone Places > C.S. Fly's Photography Gallery
C.S. Fly's Photography Gallery (and Fly's Boarding House)
Location:
312 East Fremont Street
(this is a reconstructed storefront -- the entrance is through the O.K. Corral Hitsoric Complex)
Hours:
Daily 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
Closed on Thanksgiving & Christmas
Admission Fee:
$10.00 per person
Children 5 and under free with an adult
(tickets good for all day re-entry)
Contact:
www.ok-corral.com
info@ok-corral.com
(520) 457-3456
Special Notes:
- Ticket includes admission to all of the O.K. Corral Historic Complex museums, the Historama, the Gunfight Re-enactment and a free copy of the 1881 reprint of The Tombstone Epitaph newspaper with the original reports of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral available at The Epitaph
- The O.K. Corral Historic Complex is handicap accessible
- No weapons or pets are allowed in the O.K. Corral Historic Complex
Beginning of an Era
Camillus Sydney Fly, known professionally as C.S. Fly (and called “Buck”
by his friends) was one of the best-known photographers of the old
west.
He still is the most famous photographer from Tombstone and the Arizona Territory.
C.S.
Fly was a pioneer photojournalist who, along with his wife, documented
events on the frontier in the late 19th century.
In addition to capturing Tombstone’s residents and daily life, Fly’s photos are the only known images of Native Americans before they lost the war to the U.S. government.
C.S. Fly's photo of Apache men, women and children, 1886
How They Started
In September 1879, Fly married divorcée Mary (née McKie) Goodrich, who was known as Mollie, in San Francisco.
Mollie was a skillful photographer in her own right, making her role not just wife, but business partner.
The Flys soon left California arriving in Tombstone in December 1879.
They immediately built the C.S. Fly’s Photography Gallery to pursue their artistic craft together in 1880.
At the same time they constructed Fly’s Boarding House, a 12-room accommodation, for a stable income.
This allowed Buck to travel the territory recording history with his camera.
The Boarding House was in the front of the building and the studio was located in the back.
When Buck traveled, Mollie ran both the studio and boarding house.
Historic in More Than One Way
While Fly’s Gallery was the base of operations for Buck’s photography, the Boarding House has its own claim to fame.
The house was a center of well-known historical activity, with Big Nose Kate and Doc Holliday staying there while in Tombstone,
In addition, the boarding house was located next to the site of the famous 1881 Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
Kate Harony (Big Nose Kate) watched the gunfight from her room.
Buck was in his studio when the gunfight started but he didn’t have time to take any pictures.
Sheriff John Behan watched it from inside Fly’s Gallery and Ike Clanton ran away from the fight and hid there, too.
Buck did have an active part in proceedings, however, after the shooting stopped.
He took a rifle out and disarmed Billy Clanton as he lay dying against the house next door.
Even though the gunfight itself was over so quickly that no photographs were taken of it, the most famous photo C.S. Fly ever took was still a result.
The one of Tom McLaury, Frank McLaury, and Billy Clanton laid out in their caskets after the gunfight.
This photograph is also believed to be the only photograph of Billy Clanton ever taken.
End of an Era – In Two Parts
After CS Fly died in 1901, Mollie ran both the studio and boarding house by herself.
She did not travel for photographs, limiting her work to in-studio portraits of local Tombstone residents and visitors.
Mollie also curated her husband's collection of images and glass plate negatives, allowing publication at request, sometimes for a fee.
Studio portraits or reprints cost 35¢.
Then Further Tragedy Struck
Both the studio and the boarding house burned to the ground in 1912.
The fire destroyed almost all of the photo equipment and a significant portion of the glass plate negatives and photographs.
Mollie did grab one of the cameras when the fire broke out and captured another historic photograph of Tombstone's history:
C.S. Fly Photography Gallery and Boarding House fire, 1912.
Mollie preserved her husband's legacy by donating the rest of the photos and negatives to the Smithsonian Museum.
She retired to California where she lived until her death in 1925.
The C.S. Fly Museum Today
Replicas of the original buildings have been constructed on site and are now part of the O.K. Corral Historic Complex.
Some of Fly’s most famous as well as lesser-known photographs are on display along with descriptions of some of his photographic trips and experiences.
Visitors can view some authentic photographic equipment of the era as well.
There is also a replica of Doc Holliday's and Big Nose Kate’s room in the Boarding House portion of the museum.
For a download of the O.K. Corral Historic Complex, click here.
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