Fly became a heavy drinker and Molly briefly left him in Tombstone in 1887 , taking Kitty with her to Florence . On May 3 , 1887 , a large earthquake struck Bavispe in Sonora , Mexico , destroying most of the adobe houses in Bavispe and killing 42 of the town 's 700 residents . Tombstone Dr. George E. Goodfellow was fascinated by the earth movement and studied the earthquake 's effects . He obtained a commission from the U.S. government to travel to the earthquake area , and on his second trip in July 1887 he brought C.S. Fly with him to help study and record the effects . They traveled over through the Sierra Madre mountains recording observations , mostly on foot . Goodfellow used Fly 's images of the effects of the earthquake , the damaged and ruined buildings , and survivors to illustrate his report
large earthquake
1887 Sonora earthquake
C. S. Fly