William "Buffalo Bill" Cody was a "boy extra," a bullwhacker, cattle driver, hunter, and an American Indian fighter on the Great Plains of the 1850s, all before becoming a teenager. He claimed to have killed nearly 5,000 buffalo to supply construction crews of the Kansas Pacific Railroad. In time, trading on his fame as Buffalo Bill and as a Pony Express rider, the then-Army scout transformed himself into a showman extraordinaire with the establishment of his Wild West arena extravaganza. The Wild West part circus, part rodeo, part history toured for three decades, playing to enthusiastic crowds across the United States and Europe. For a time, Buffalo Bill Cody was possibly the most famous man in the world. Though Cody made huge sums with the Wild West show, he died a poor man in 1917. With this new biography, readers can explore Buffalo Bill Cody's life, his legacy, and his personification of the myth of the American West.

 

This book was recognised in the Nonfiction category by the Spur Award.

This book is part of a book series called Legends Of the Wild West .

There are 133 pages in this book. This is a reference book. This book was published 2010 by Chelsea House Publishers .

Ronald A. Reis is the author of 15 books, including young adult biographies of Eugenie Clark, Jonas Salk, and Lou Gehrig.