Ever heard of the Wild West? If you are familiar with it then the name Buffalo Bill will surely ring a bell. William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody as it known to many is an all-American soldier, a showman, bullwhacker, a pony express rider, a trapper, a wagon master, a hotel manage, Indian fighter, army scout and a bison hunter. Born and raised in Scott County, Iowa Buffalo Bill is a legend in many ways than one. Iowa’s history would never be complete without Buffalo Bill’s participation. It’s colorful life and amazing adventures made him an icon in the US history.
So how did he get the nickname Buffalo Bill? It all started when he signed a contract to the Kansas Pacific Railroad workers as a buffalo meat supplier. By slaughtering 4, 860 buffalos he earned an exclusive right to the name over Bill Comstock whom he had competed in a shooting match. But his career as a bison hunter did not stop there as he serves as a soldier during the American Civil War early in his life. He also became as a Chief of Scout for the US Third Cavalry to subdued Indian resistance during the Plain Wars. In fact, he was awarded a Medal of Honor in 1872 for his scout service.
His Wild West career started in 1872 when he debuted in Chicago in The Scouts of the Prairie. This show was one of the original Wild West shows by Ned Buntline. But his career skyrocketed when he formed his own show called “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West “. The show featured one of his old Indian friend Sitting Bull during the parade on horseback which was participated by other horse-culture groups such as Arabs, Turks, Mongols, Georgians and Gauchos. The show also tributes its colorful costumes and distinctive horse-riding techniques, shooting exhibitions, the reenactment of the Pony express, stagecoach robberies and Indian attacks on wagon trains.
With all his adventures and misadventures, William Cody died on his estate in Denver, Colorado on January 10, 1917 due to a kidney failure. Baptized as a catholic before he died, this Wild Wild West showman received tributes from its friends, from George V of the United Kingdom to Kaiser Wilhelm II of Imperial Germany. Up to this day, the legacy of Buffalo Bill remains in the heart of all American people on how he fights for civil rights and shapes the history of the nation.
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