Facts About William "Buffalo Bill" Cody

Buffalo Bill Cody is as close as they come to a real-life legend of the Old West. His story reads like a tall tale, the only difference being that much of Buffalo Bill's story is true. His life is full of amazing adventures in a wide-open land.

The Early Years

Buffalo Bill was born William F. Cody in LeClaire, Iowa, on February 26, 1846. His family moved to Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1853. When Bill was 11 years old he set out on his own. During these early years on his own, Bill made a name for himself as a trapper, a gold miner and a Pony Express rider by the ripe young age of 14.

The Civil War Period

Being too young to enlist in the Army during the Civil War didn't stop Cody from helping the Army, anyway. Cody became a Union ranger and a dispatch bearer scout before he was 18. In 1864, he enlisted, becoming part of the Kansas Volunteer Infantry where he served until the Civil War was over.

Creating An American Legend

Following the Civil War, Cody found himself an expert on America's Great Plains, having crossed them many times over his short life. Because of his skill as a plainsman and a man who had a proven ability to live off the land, Bill became a popular guide for those wanting to hunt buffalo. His skill at bringing down these large, lumbering animals earned him not only the nickname Buffalo Bill, but it also helped to cement his legendary status in dime novels and media accounts that carried tales of his amazing feats across the country and back to people in the East.

A Star is Born

In 1872, when Buffalo Bill was 26 years old, he went to Chicago to star on stage in a production called "The Scouts of the Prairie," a drama created by a dime novelist. Even though Cody was panned for his acting ability, the show won rave reviews. Hot off the success of his first foray into the world of showmanship, Cody formed his own performing troupe the following year and called it The Buffalo Bill Combination. The troupe's show, also named "Scouts of the Prairie," was an extravaganza that laid the foundation for the famous Buffalo Bill's Wild West, the show that made his exploits legendary and carried Buffalo Bill Cody's name around the world.

Duped in Denver

As times changed, Buffalo Bill found it hard to make a living doing what he loved: performing in his Wild West Show. In need of financing, Bill traveled to Denver, Colorado, in 1912 in hopes of securing $20,000 financing for his show. He got the money but the show was seized by the Denver sheriff one year later and held for failure to pay off the $20,000 debt. Buffalo Bill, with little money left, was forced to work in the circus of the man from whom he had borrowed the $20,000, Harry Tammen. It is believed that Tammen knew that Bill would never be able to pay off the loan in a year and having Bill in his Sells-Floto circus was Tammen's goal all along.

The Death of the Old West

As the United States grew up, Buffalo Bill's Wild West became more and more a thing of the past. And while his show had produced enough money to make Bill a millionaire many times over, bad investments and growing debt never let him retire and put the show behind him. He died in Denver, Colorado, in 1917 and was buried on a promotory on Lookout Mountain just west of Golden, Colorado.