John Peters Ringo, better known as Johnny Ringo, was an old west cowboy who became more famous after his death than he was in life. Born in Indiana, and a later resident of Missouri, California, and Texas, Ringo showed up in Arizona around 1879. Although the movies have often depicted him as a loud-mouthed extrovert, those who knew him usually described him as quiet, moody, and quick tempered. Also unlike the movie versions of Johnny Ringo, he was never known as a gunfighter, having killed only unarmed men during various stages of his previous life.

According to the coroner's report, Johnny Ringo committed suicide. A few weeks before his death, there was a fire which wiped out most of downtown Tombstone. The silver mines were lagging, and the beef market prices were down. Many of his friends had died or been chased elsewhere, and the "outlaw west" way of life was fast disappearing. Friends and acquantances said that Ringo was depressed after his family in California stopped talking to him, and a number of his outlaw friends had been killed. Ringo had taken to long bouts of drinking, and decided to camp in the Turkey Creek canyon area in the Chiricahua mountains, 30 miles east of Tombstone. He tied his boots to his saddle, a common practice to keep scorpions out, but then his horse got loose and ran off. According to the coroner, Ringo tore up his undershirt and tied the pieces to his feet to protect them and sat, drunk, at the base of a large tree to spend the night. As evening came on, depressed about his life, and without horse, fire, whiskey, or even his boots, Ringo shot himself. His six-shooter, one round gone, was found hanging from his finger the next day. At least, that's the official version of his death. The owner of the land where Ringo's grave can be found has a different version of the story, but he's not fond of visitors, and discourages tourists "knocking on his door to ask him fool questions."

There are MANY other versions, which include theories that he was killed by Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, or one of their friends. Take your pick. None of them are really provable, although several are clearly false. (Doc Holliday, for instance, was standing before a judge in a courtroom in Colorado the day Ringo died.)