The Wild West conjures images of lawmen, cowboys, Indians and Outlaws; Wyatt Earp, John Wayne, Jesse James and Geronimo.

The fascination with the untamed West draws many a tourist to Tombstone, especially during Helldorado Days. But during my visit to the festivities in the Town Too Tough Die, I noticed the abundance of Stetsons, spurs and maintained mustaches. But where were the Indians? The Mexicans? The Chinese?

“I think, in terms of historical accuracy, Tombstone was a place where the miners, lived, where they slept, where they were fed, where they recreated. The emphasis on Wyatt Earp and his conflict with some of the cowboys doesn’t tell you much about the real Tombstone, which was a mining community,” said Thomas Sheridan, research anthropologist and professor of anthropology at the University of Arizona.

The mines and crushers were powered by fuel wood. So there were lots of Mexican woodcutters and mule skinners around. And there was also a sizable Chinese population, he said.

But through the Helldorado crowds of cowboys, cavalry and gunfighters, spotting one of a handful of minority characters was not impossible.

Posing for pictures and handing out autographed headshots, Jerry Brewer, aka Terco Paco the Tombstone Bandito, sat clad in bandoliers and a sombrero.

“You see 300 cowboys, 300 Docs, 300 Earps; I wanted to be totally different,” he said.

Brewer, a Dragoon local, has been playing Terco Paco for seven years. But before Terco made his debut, Brewer played Ike Clayton.

“Every time I grew a mustache, my ex-wife and my kids used to tell me, ‘You look like a mean Mexican,” Brewer said.

Soon after, others said the same. Brewer bought himself a serape, sombrero and bandoliers. He even referenced Eli Wallach’s performance in “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” as Tuco as inspiration.

“I found a character that people love,” said Brewer. “(Banditos) came out of the revolutions. These people were fighters, they were warriors.” They turned desert marauders and they were a tough cruel gang to run into.

Banditos were not the only minority present during 1880s Tombstone.

Mixed among the cowboy twang one might have heard a heavy Chinese accent.

Through the crowd one might have made out the Fu Manchu mustache and the oriental fan of Thomas Olah and Rebecca Witherington as they posed as Mr. Wrong and Mrs. Wrong.

“During Helldorado there’s so many cowboys in town and there are people also playing the Mexican part, but nobody ever plays the Chinese part. So I was trying to bring more of a variety in Helldorado,” Olah said.

In years past he played a Mexican and doctor.

“I always try to play someone different, someone who is not represented as much,” Olah said. “I try to do things different, things that stand out more to show more variety instead of the typical cowboy or the typical Doc Holiday.”

With a Chinese and Mexican representation, the Native American was still elusive.

“Tombstone was out in the middle of nowhere. And it would have been near or in Chiricahua Apache territory,” Sheridan said, mentioning Geronimo and Cochise.

But Brewer said there was at least one Native American at the festivities, although I wasn’t able to spot them.

“It’s always cowboys and Indians, but you rarely ever see anyone playing an Indian,” Brewer said. “I would like to see more Native Americans.”

Brewer said he would like to portray Cochise but his tattoos make it difficult.

Indians may be scarce but the portrayal of women is not. Olah said he wished more people would play the female minority. Not all the women were ladies, saloon girls or madams. There were actresses, performers, miners and women of ethnicities.

Madame Mustache specializes in female clothing of the period.

“We have people of all different backgrounds that come in and that’s what they’re interested in,” being ladies, saloon girls and madams, said Phyllis Deloia, an employee of Madame Mustache.

She said, they do carry a few Native American costumes, but 99 percent of the demand is for the ladies, saloon girls and madam costumes.

The demand for ethnic costumes might be dampened by availability and cost.

“There are very few companies that make (outfits or cowboys), let alone companies that specialize in (ethnic clothing of the period),” said Pixie Burleson of Bronco Trading.

She said that dressing as a Native American or a Vaquero is expensive and might call for custom tailoring.

But despite the set backs for ethnic costumes, some performers agree that there should be more minority representation.

Minority representation has always been small but it has gotten better, Olah said.

“We are trying to bring more of a variety and more of the minorities in to show the diversity of the era.”

There were people here from all over the world, Brewer said. “There was this giant melting pot here in the 17 and 1800s.”