Day 5 - Buffalo Bill

When you say wild west, you say cowboy and indian stories. And who symbolizes that better than William F. Cody, better known as Buffalo Bill. He became world famous with his 'wild west' shows but his life also reads like a book. He started working at the very young age (14 years) for the Pony Express. The service began in 1860 and used  young riders to bring post bags from station to station over a 2,000 mile long journey. It was more dangerous than it sounds. Before launching the Pony Express it took a month to bring mail to California, now only 10 days. But the service was not profitable enough and the company went bankrupt a year later. He also worked as a guide for the pioneers and as scout for the US Army. In 1867, he began an 18-month contract to provide food for the Kansas Pacific Railroad workers as a bison hunter. He earned about $ 500 a month, which was a huge amount at that time. He had an exceptional talent as a bison hunter, but refused to kill an animal for other than food. He has always condemned the slaughter of animals for anything else. His talent soon gave him the nickname 'Buffalo Bill'. And so he became a legend like other frontier men as Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone and Kit Carson.

After his experiences in the West, Buffalo Bill went into the show business. He traveled through the United States with shows based on his ‘Western’ adventures. In 1883 he founded the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show, a circus-style show that lasted for years. Buffalo Bill's show inspired Irving Berlin to write the musical Annie Get Your Gun in 1946. Indian Sioux chief Sitting Bull was also a popular guest in his shows. In 1887 he performed in London at the celebration of Queen Victoria's jubilee and in 1889 he made a tour through Europe, including the World Exhibition in Paris.

In the town of Cody, named after him, is the interesting Buffalo Bill Museum. Buffalo Bill's life story is presented in an attractive way.

We continue our way to Sheridan. It has been proclaimed for some years to be the most beautiful western village. I have a different opinion, but ok. Perhaps with some imagination, saloons instead of cafes, horses instead of cars, you can come a long way.