Collection Summary
Buffalo Bill
Buffalo Bill collection,
1884-1954, (bulk 1884-1916)
00264
1.75 cubic ft. (4 boxes)
University of Wyoming. American Heritage Center.
English
Collection contains correspondence, legal and financial
materials, photographs, a photo album, playbills, and various printed materials
relating to Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show.
Arrangement of the Collection
The Buffalo Bill Collection is arranged in five series.
Biography of Buffalo Bill
Born February 26, 1846 in LeClair, Iowa, William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody moved with
his family to Kansas and later rode for the Pony Express from 1860-1861. He served
briefly in the Civil War and was given the nickname "Buffalo Bill" when he supplied
buffalo meat for workers on the Kansas Pacific Railroad in 1867-1868. As chief of
scouts for the Fifth U.S. Cavalry he participated in several Indian fights between
1868 and 1872. In 1869 his career took a new turn when he became the subject of a
dime novel. He subsequently appeared in theatrical melodramas, touring successfully
for 11 years. In 1883 he organized a wild west show that staged Indian fights,
roundups, stage robberies, and buffalo hunts and introduced such stars as Buck
Taylor and Annie Oakley to the public. In 1887 Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show was a
part of the American Exhibition at Queen Victoria's Jubilee in London. The show
regularly toured Europe until 1906. In 1908 Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show merged
with Pawnee Bill's Great Far East. In 1913 the Col. W.F. Cody (Buffalo Bill)
Historical Pictures Company was formed to produce short films on the Indian Wars and
in 1914-1915 Cody traveled with the Sells-Floto circus. In 1916 Cody joined and made
his final appearance with Miller Brothers and Arlington 101 Ranch Wild West Show. He
died on January 10, 1917 in Denver, Colorado. Cody maintained several business
interests one of which was the Shoshone Irrigation Company, which began in 1895 and
created the present day town of Cody, Wyoming, in partnership with George Washington
Thornton Beck. In 1902 He formed the Cody-Dyer Mining and Milling Company, an
unsuccessful venture which cost him most of the profits from his wild west show.
Scope and Content
The Buffalo Bill Collection, 1844-1954, focuses primarily on the operations of
"Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show" from 1884 to 1916. It contains correspondence, legal
documents, ticket receipts, train schedules, playbills and photographs related to
the various aspects of daily operation and promotion of the wild west show both in
the United States and abroad. Additionally there is printed material advertising
both William Cody and his wild west show, as well as booklets written after his
death in 1917 which examine his life and the impact he had on the American west.
Access Restrictions
There are no access restrictions on the materials for research purposes, and the
collection is open to the public.
Copyright Information
The researcher assumes full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and
libel laws as they apply.
Related Materials
There are numerous other archival collections related to Buffalo Bill Cody at the
date of processing.
Acquisition Information
The Buffalo Bill collection was created by the American Heritage Center using
material, both original and copied, from various sources.
Processing Information
The collection was processed by D.C. Thompson, October 1996.
Preferred Citation
Item Description, Box Number, Folder Number, Collection Name, Collection Number,
Accession Number, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.
Existence and Location of Copies
Digital reproductions of select material from this collection are available at
https://digitalcollections.uwyo.edu/luna/servlet/uwydbuwy~60~60.
Access Terms
Buffalo Bill, 1846-1917
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show
Wild west shows
Photographs
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Social Life and Customs
Sports and Recreation
City and Town Life
Politics, Government, and Law
Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
Container List
Series I. Correspondence
1909-1917
Arranged chronologically by month and year. The series includes personal
correspondence from Cody to friends and associates as well as business
correspondence concerning his wild west show. This series includes some
legal documents.
1
1
W.F. Cody to General Sliney: Handwritten, personal letter from
Washington. (Original in safe. Photocopy available for research
use.)
August 10, 1915
1
2
William C. Garlow Donation:Personal and business correspondence
of William F. Cody, much of it to J. Frank Cody and other family
members. Photocopies only. Originals are housed at the Buffalo Bill
Historical Center
1909-1917
Series II. Legal and Financial Records
1884-1953
Arranged alphabetically by company name. The series includes legal documents
from Germany, Italy, and France pertaining to the entry into and the
functioning of the wild west show while within the boundaries of those
nations.
1
3
Barnum and Bailey: documents concerning the Barnum and Bailey
circus and its association with Buffalo Bill's Wild West
Show
1902-1904
1
4
Barnum and Bailey with Buffalo Bill's Wild West: French documents
concerning the Barnum and Bailey circus and its association with Buffalo
Bill's Wild West Show
1884-1905
1
5
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and Congress of Rough Riders:
German documents concerning the operation of the wild west show in that
country
1906
1
6
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and Congress of Rough Riders:
Italian documents concerning the operation of the wild west show in that
country
1906-1917
1
7
Bill Posting Summaries: From European tour
1906
1
8
Press Reports/Ticket Checkers Report: From France
1905
1
9
Excursion Flyer: From France
1905
Series III. Printed Materials
1887-1954
Arranged alphabetically by title. Contains magazines, booklets, schedules and
programs promoting Cody and/or his wild west show.
2
1
Buffalo Bill Bids You Good Bye: Magazine and Official Review of
the combined Buffalo Bill Wild West and Pawnee Bill Far East
shows
circa 1910
2
2
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and Congress of Rough Riders of the
World: Historical sketches and program
1893
2
3
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and Congress of Rough Riders of the
World: Description and program
1898
2
4
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Combined with Pawnee's Bill's Great Far
East: Magazine and daily review
circa 1910
2
5
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Schedules: Summary of seasons card
and photocopies of individual season schedules
1893-1905
2
6
Famous Hunting Parties of the Plains: Article by Buffalo Bill, in
The Cosmopolitan
June 1894
2
7
Letters from Buffalo Bill: Booklet by Stella Adelyne Foote, taken
from originals at the Wonderland Museum, Billings, Montana
1954
2
8
A Peep at Buffalo Bill's Wild West: Children's book in verse with
color illustrations (1 hardbound copy, 1 softbound copy)
1887
2
9
Pipe Dreams: Stories of Buffalo Bill: Booklet by Dan Winget,
smoker, Clinton, Iowa, fifth smoke
1925
Series IV. Photographs
circa 1887- circa 1916
Arranged alphabetically by subject. The series contains photographs of Cody,
his wild west show, and the participants in it. It also contains outdoor
scenes from some of the countries visited by the show and portraits of
important personages of those countries.
2
10
Buffalo Bill and His Wild West Show
circa 1887- circa 1916
4
Buffalo Bill and His Wild West Show, photograph album created by Lawrence Hauley,
1914
2
11
Church: European cathedral, statue of Joan of Arc in
front
undated
2
12
Clarence L. Dean
1894
2
13
English and European Royalty, Nobility, and Unidentified
People
undated
2
14
English, Scottish, and Irish Views
ca. 1903
2
15
Horses and Cattle: Branding cattle in a chute; bucking horse.
Photographs taken for Collier's Magazine
undated
2
16
Native Americans: Portraits of Indian men in ceremonial dress;
many are identified
undated
2
17
Party Tent: Interior of pavilion arranged for banquet (2
copies)
undated
2
18
Postcards: Buffalo Bill's Wild West; issued in
Europe
1902-1903, undated
2
19
Pope Pius X
undated
2
20
Unidentified Snapshots: House; rural road; cornfield near
windmill and farm buildings; woman with four small children
circa 1900
Series V. Bound Volumes
1903-1905
Arranged by size. The series includes bound playbills, and record volumes
concerning "Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders."
3
1
Summary of Printing And Tickets, France
1905
3
2
Railway Clearing House, Junction Diagrams
undated
3
3
Playbills, France
undated
3
4
Summary of Printing And Tickets, England
1903-1904
3
5
Summary of Printing And Tickets, France
1905
3
6
Playbills, France
undated
3
7
Large Playbills, Italy
undated
Additional Container Lists
The American Heritage Center is in the process of converting its older container lists to a more accessible format. This link is to an older version of a container list.
Link to Accessioning Worksheet (PDF)