10 Places Where Cody Yellowstone is Preserving its Heritage and Inspiring Visitors
CODY, Wyo., October 19, 2021 – When William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody saw Wyoming’s Bighorn Basin and its proximity to Yellowstone National Park, he was inspired to found the Wyoming town in 1896 that bears his name.
For the next 20 years, he returned from his world travels to the town of Cody as it developed into a park gateway and destination of its own.
Today, Cody along with Powell, Meeteetse and parts of Yellowstone make up the region known as Cody Yellowstone. Buffalo Bill’s spirit lives on, and its residents and visitors alike continue to find inspiration while preserving a lifestyle synonymous with the man who was once the most famous person in the world.
Here are 10 places where the American West lives on in Cody Yellowstone.
Old Trail Town/Museum of the Old West.
This enclave of 26 authentic frontier buildings includes one used by Butch Cassidy and his infamous Hole-in-the-Wall Gang. One of the town’s many gravesites belongs to Jeremiah “Liver Eating” Johnston – portrayed by actor Robert Redford in the 1972 film.
Buffalo Bill Center of the West (BBCW)
This world-renowned cultural powerhouse is comprised of five museums under one roof, including the Buffalo Bill Museum spotlighting the showman’s life and times as well as the Plains Indian Museum, which tells the stories of indigenous population. The complex also includes the Draper Museum of Natural History, Cody Firearms Museum and Whitney Western Art Museum.
The largest guest housing complex in Yellowstone, Canyon Lodge & Cabins is comprised of multiple lodge buildings, including five 80-room buildings constructed offsite in modules using environmentally friendly methods and then assembled onsite.
By Western Hands showcases Western artisans.
By Western Hands Museum & Archives
This multi-faceted facility is a testament to the creations of furniture artisan Thomas Molesworth and others who skillfully created functional furniture using elements found in nature and Western life.
In 1902 Buffalo Bill Cody built the Irma Hotel and named it after his youngest daughter. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the hotel’s famous room-long Cherrywood bar – still in use today in what is now the hotel dining room – was presented to Buffalo Bill by England’s Queen Victoria.
The Cody Nite Rodeo has been entertaining visitors for more than 80 years.
This nightly summer-season event is a patently Western experience that was inspired by Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show more than a century ago.
In 1932 “Ernest Hemingway of Key West, Florida” was enjoying some time fishing the Clark’s Fork River by day and swapping stories with the locals in the Irma Bar at night. The desk register is displayed at the inn and open to the page containing Hemingway’s signature.
A guard tower at Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center is a solemn reminder of the incarceration of 14,000 citizens.
Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center
Some 14,000 Japanese-Americans lived at the Heart Mountain Internment Camp. Today’s center was designed to resemble the typical barracks-style accommodations that housed its internees.
Guest and dude ranches in Cody Yellowstone have been helping travelers from around the globe discover their inner cowgirl (and cowboy) for more than a century. In fact, the term “dude” comes from the region, and Cody is the home of the Dude Ranchers Association, which was established in 1926.
Black-footed ferret exhibit at Meeteetse Museums
When a dog named Shep showed up with a dead animal at the Lazy BV ranch in 1981, ranch owner John Hogg contacted the authorities because this dead animal was so unusual. It turns out this was a black-footed ferret that many thought had gone extinct. An exhibit at the museum provides details.
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Home of the Great American Adventure, Cody Yellowstone is comprised of the northwestern Wyoming towns of Cody, Powell and Meeteetse as well as areas inside of Yellowstone National Park and the valley east of the entrance. The region is known for rodeos, authentic guest and dude ranches, world-class museums and recreational adventures that reflect the adventurous spirit of the visionaries and explorers who brought the remote region to the world’s attention.
Related hashtags:
#YellowstoneCountry
#CodyWyoming
#CenteroftheWest
#BuffaloBill
#Yellowstone
#ThatsWY
Media contact:
Mesereau Travel Public Relations
720-284-1512
