James Earp

James Cooksey Earp (June 28, 1841 – January 25, 1926) was a lesser known older brother of Old West lawman Virgil Earp and lawman/gambler Wyatt Earp. Unlike his brothers, he was a saloon-keeper and was not present at the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral on October 26, 1881. Civil War service Earp was born in Hartford, Kentucky, and was reared in a tight-knit family environment. In 1861, at 19, he enlisted in the Union Army at the outbreak of the American Civil War, joining Company F, 17th Illinois Infantry in May, 1861. His brothers Virgil and Newton also enlisted. The 17th regiment was organized and armed at Alton, Illinois. On October 31, 1861, the unit fought Missouri State Guard forces near Fredericktown, Missouri. Over 60 troops were killed or wounded. James was severely wounded in the shoulder and temporarily lost use of his left arm, but he remained in the army for over a year. He was discharged in March 1863 as disabled. Newton and Virgil served until the end of the war.