Welcome to The Russ House

Tombstone is a town in southeastern Arizona, known for its Wild West history. Tombstone Arizona is internationally known for its stormy and storied past.  Western legends like Wyatt Earp and “Doc” Holliday became household names after the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral®.   However, the legend didn’t end there, it continues today!

Tombstone, Arizona 71.5 mile South of Tucson (1 hour 15 min drive) and is 184 miles South of Phoenix.   Settled in the high desert at 4541 feet elevation, Tombstone is much cooler in the summer than most of Arizona.

In its early days, Tombstone was a rough and tumble silver-mining town made famous by the O.K. Corral gunfight. Today, you can walk where Wyatt Earp walked, see where the infamous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral took place, visit American Old West historical places such as the Tombstone Courthouse, Bird Cage Theatre, and much, more. 

Sal Anderson and Jacob Smith opened 'The Russ House' in December 1880 as a boarding house and hotel with one of the largest restaurants in Tombstone.    The Russ House is closely related to Nellie Cashman who operated it until 1886.  Ellen ‘Nellie’ Cashman, known as the “Angel of Tombstone” was born in County Cork, Ireland in September 1845. Nellie was born into a poor Irish Catholic family during the Irish Potato Famine and known in Ireland as the “great hunger.” The eldest of two sisters, Nellie, her mother and young sister immigrated to America after her father’s death around 1850.  

Nellie Cashman and her associate Joseph Pascholy co-owned and ran a restaurant and hotel in Tombstone called The Russ House.  The Russ House, on the corner of 5th and Toughnut Streets, was named after the original in San Francisco. The Russ House offered meals to Miners and vagrants at little or no cost. Nellie served 50-cent meals, advertising that "there are no cockroaches in my kitchen and the flour is clean." Nellie had rooms available for $8.00 per week. Nellie fed the hungry, needy and desperate of the silver camp, never turning anyone away.

Tombstone is proud of its American Old West history - and love to entertain visitors with reenactments, celebrations, and visual displays that depict the rich history that made Tombstone "The Town Too Tough To Die." A Visit to Tombstone, Arizona WILL Be the Most Historic Fun You Will Ever Have!