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VOICE ONE:
I’m Gwen Outen.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Doug Johnson with PEOPLE IN AMERICA in VOA SpecialEnglish. Today, we tell the story of a man called “Buffalo Bill.”His real name was William F. Cody. He created “Wild West” shows thatpeople around the world enjoyed for more than thirty years.
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VOICE ONE:
William Frederick Cody was born in eighteen-forty-six in thestate of Iowa. He died in Colorado in nineteen-seventeen.Researchers disagree about other incidents in his life. That isbecause some stories about “Buffalo Bill” are a combination offactual events and make-believe. However, there is general agreementabout the influence of “Buffalo Bill” Cody. People say herepresented the spirit and tradition of the American West.
VOICE TWO:
William F. Cody grew up in the center of the United States.William’s family moved from Iowa to the territory of Kansas when hewas still a child. His father died in eighteen-fifty-seven. A shorttime later, William started working at different jobs to help hisfamily. He worked as a driver for a team of oxen. He guided thepowerful animals as they moved goods from place to place. He alsocarried messages for a local company.
Later, William joined a group of men seeking gold in themountains of Colorado. They were not very successful. Then he got ajob as a Pony Express rider. The Pony Express used teams of men andhorses to transport mail across the country. William was a skilledrider. Once he rode five-hundred-fifteen kilometers in a singletrip. This was one of the longest rides for the Pony Express. At thetime, he was just fifteen years old.
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VOICE ONE:
Kansas became a state in eighteen-sixty-one. A few weeks later,the Civil War between the states started. Southern states fought toprotect the rights of individual states. Northern states fought tokeep the country united. During the war, Kansas joined with theNorth and provided men for the Union army.
William was too young to fight when the Civil War started. Atfirst, he served the Union forces as a scout, or explorer.
In eighteen-sixty-four, he joined the United States Army. Codybecame a member of the Seventh Kansas Cavalry. His force was sent tonearby southern states during the Civil War. Cody drove a team ofhorses. He remained there until the war ended.
VOICE TWO:
After the war, William Cody married Louisa Frederici in SaintLouis, Missouri. They were married for more than fifty years and hadfour children. When they were first married, Cody had many differentjobs. For example, he operated a hotel in Kansas. Then he beganhunting buffalo for work crews building the Kansas Pacific Railroad.The workers used the wild animals for meat. Cody got the name”Buffalo Bill” by winning a buffalo hunting competition. Reports sayhe shot and killed more than four-thousand buffalo in just eighteenmonths.
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VOICE ONE:
Cody re-joined the Army in eighteen-sixty-eight. He served as acivilian scout for military forces fighting Indians in the West. Hisexperience and skills made him an able fighter and guide for theArmy.
Cody helped the Fifth Cavalry defeat a group of Cheyennewarriors. He also served as a guide for individuals who wanted tohunt buffalo. Some hunters came from big cities in the easternUnited States and from other countries. Once he guided a member ofRussia’s ruling family, the Grand Duke Alexis, on a hunting trip.American newspapers reported on their activities.
VOICE TWO:
Cody’s exciting life provided the details for many stories. Anumber of writers began producing stories about famous people of thewestern United States. These stories became known as dime novels.Dime novels helped make heroes of people like Davy Crockett and KitCarson.
A writer named Ned Buntline decided to write a book about BuffaloBill. Buntline’s book and newspaper reports helped make Cody famous.The book became popular and was later made into a play called”Scouts of the Prairie.” Buffalo Bill even appeared in the show.Critics said Cody was a bad actor, but the show was very successful.
The play led Cody to form his own traveling show. The groupincluded another hero of the American West, Wild Bill Hickok.
VOICE ONE:
During this period, Cody often returned to the West to find otherwork. He assisted the Army in its operations against Indian tribes.In eighteen-seventy-six, Indian warriors defeated General GeorgeCuster and his forces in the Battle of Little Big Horn in Montana. Afew weeks later, Cody and other soldiers clashed with a group ofCheyenne Indians. During the fighting, Cody reportedly killed aCheyenne warrior named Yellow Hair. This event added yet anotherincident to Buffalo Bill’s collection of stories.
Cody liked the idea of being a showman and telling people aboutthe American West. In eighteen-seventy-nine, he wrote his own lifestory and began publishing his own dime novels. He also continued toproduce plays.
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VOICE TWO:
Cody organized his first Wild West show in eighteen-eighty-two inthe state of Nebraska. The show was performed outside. It wasdesigned to entertain and educate crowds of people. There werecowboys, Indians, buffalo and other kinds of animals. People werenot sure exactly what the show was, but they liked it.
The following year, Cody and hisbusiness partners formed a traveling show called “Buffalo Bill’sWild West.” It brought cowboys and Indians to people in parts of theUnited States who might never have seen them. The show was a majorsuccess for the next thirty years. People liked it for many reasons.One was a desire to return to earlier, simpler times. The AmericanWest of the dime novels was fast disappearing. The area was startingto develop.
VOICE ONE:
“Buffalo Bill’s Wild West” show included cowboys hunting buffalo.It had riders for the Pony Express. It re-created an Indian attackon a carriage transporting goods. The show also re-created theattack against General Custer and his forces. It included Indianswho were involved in the real attack. It also included the famousSioux chief Sitting Bull, who had killed General Custer. SittingBull traveled with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show for several months.
In later years, a cowgirl named Annie Oakley performed with theshow. She was one of the best gun shooters in the country. AnnieOakley could ride a horse standing up while shooting at a target.She could shoot a piece of money out of someone’s hand. Once, shebecame famous for shooting a cigarette held in the mouth of GermanCrown Prince Wilhelm.
“Buffalo Bill’s Wild West” performed in cities and towns acrossthe United States and in Europe. In eighteen-eighty-seven, the showperformed in England in honor of Queen Victoria’s fiftiethanniversary in power. Six years later, the show was popular at theWorld’s Fair in Chicago, Illinois.
VOICE TWO:
Buffalo Bill Cody was said to be the most famous American in theworld by the beginning of the twentieth century. American presidentsmet with him to discuss issues important to the West. He had manymodern ideas. For example, he supported fair treatment for AmericanIndians. And he supported equal pay and equal voting rights forwomen. He was also a businessman who looked toward the future. Heinvested in projects that he hoped would bring economic growth tothe West. Cody made a lot of money from his show business success.However, he lost his wealth because of bad investments and failureto watch how the money was used.
In nineteen-oh-eight, “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West” combined withanother traveling show. But this show failed. A short time later,Cody got a loan from a Colorado company to keep his show operating.But his financial situation got worse over the next few years.
VOICE ONE:
Buffalo Bill Cody died in nineteen-seventeen while visiting hissister in Denver, Colorado. He was buried near the city, at the topof Lookout Mountain. His funeral was a major event. Twenty-thousandpeople traveled there to attend the ceremony.
Today, thousands of people visit Lookout Mountain every year.They see Cody’s burial place and a museum built in his honor. And,they hear stories about people who experienced the excitement ofBuffalo Bill’s Wild West show.
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VOICE TWO:
This program was written by George Grow. Lawan Davis was ourproducer. I’m Doug Johnson.
VOICE ONE:
And I’m Gwen Outen. Join us again next week for PEOPLE IN AMERICAin VOA Special English.