Doc Holliday

Mary Katherine Horony-Cummings, better known as ‘Big Nose Kate,’ was the only woman with whom Holliday was said to have had a relationship. She was a dance hall woman and an occasional prostitute, whom Holliday found to be as intelligent as he was. According to Kate, they were married and lived in Las Vegas, New Mexico, where Holliday worked as a dentist by day and gambled by night. They had frequent quarrels that sometimes turned violent. They often parted ways but resolved their issues from time to time.

During his stay in Tombstone, he had a nasty fight with Horony, who was later exploited by his enemies to sign an affidavit that implicated him in a robbery and murder. She later revealed that she was influenced to sign the document. Following this, the judge dropped the charges. Holliday and Horony parted ways after the incident and she left the town.

John Henry Holliday was born on August 14, 1851, in Griffin, Georgia, to Henry and Alice Holliday. His father fought the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War as a ‘Confederate.’ He was of Scottish and English descent. He had an adopted brother named Francisco.

In 1864, his family moved to Valdosta, Georgia, where his mother died of tuberculosis two years later. His brother too succumbed to the same disease. Following this, his father got married to Rachel Martin.

He studied mathematics, history, and grammar in Latin and French at the ‘Valdosta Institute.’ Later, he went to Philadelphia and completed his ‘Doctor of Dental Surgery’ degree from the ‘Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery,’ at the age of 20. He had to wait till he reached the age of 21 before he could practice.

He moved to St Louis, Missouri, to work as an assistant. Soon, he relocated to Atlanta to live with his uncle. He joined Arthur C. Ford and started practicing and substituting for him in his absence.

At the age of 22, he got involved in a confrontation with a group of black youth over the use of a swimming site in the Withlacoochee River and is believed to have shot at them with a shotgun. Some reports claim that he killed one of the blacks, but there is no evidence of the incident.

He was diagnosed with tuberculosis, which had earlier killed his mother and adopted brother. On the advice to move to a warmer place, he moved to Dallas, Texas, beyond which was the Wild West.

At Dallas, he teamed up with Dr. John A. Seegar, and they started gaining recognition as a dental team. They won various awards, including one for the best set of artificial teeth and dental ware. Their joint practice ended in 1874, and Holliday started his independent practice in Dallas.

His practice suffered due to his frequent coughing spells caused by tuberculosis, and he started resorting to gambling as an easier way of earning money. He was once indicted for illegal gambling and was arrested for being involved in a gunfight.

In 1875, he decided to leave Dallas and followed the stage route to Denver, where he took up the alias “Tom Mackey” and worked as a faro dealer. Soon, he got involved in an argument with a well-known gambler, Bud Ryan, and left him seriously injured with a knife wound.

After a year at Denver, he moved further west. He found work as a card dealer in a saloon in Cheyenne. He followed the gold rush to Deadwood and later re-traced his path to Denver, gambling on the way. He went on to Kansas and then to Breckenridge, Texas, where he was seriously injured due to a gunshot wound. After recovering, he moved to Fort Griffin, where he met Mary Katherine Horony.

In 1878, Holliday and Horony moved to Dodge City, where they lived as Dr. and Mrs. John H. Holliday. He began his dental practice, but spent most of his time gambling. Soon, he got Wyatt Earp out of a tight situation. It is said that when Wyatt was outnumbered by some cowboys in a saloon, Doc Holliday drew his pistol on one of the cowboys and forced them to disarm. Since that incident, Doc and Wyatt became close friends.

Holliday gained a reputation of being a wizard with cards and with the gun too. He moved to Las Vegas with Horony and continued gambling and practicing as a dentist. The hot springs in the area were said to be therapeutic for tuberculosis patients, but the cold winters and the ban on gambling prompted him to return to Dodge City.