10 Ways to Celebrate History in Cody/Yellowstone Country
CODY, Wyo., Oct. 5, 2017 – The small town of Cody, Wyoming is a big destination for students of history, with an array of attractions that celebrate the larger-than-life personality and accomplishments of town founder Buffalo Bill as well as the colorful and sometimes sobering heritage of this classic Western town.
The Buffalo Bill Dam provides irrigation in the region.
“Buffalo Bill Cody didn’t become the most famous man in the world by blending in, and his antics and accomplishments on display in museums and other attractions continue to provide Cody visitors with an accurate and entertaining look at the events that led to the development of our friendly little town,” said Claudia Wade, director of the Park County Travel Council. “It’s not always about Buffalo Bill, though. By exploring the places where big things – good and bad — happened, you take home new lessons and insights that remain relevant in today’s world.”
Wade recommends these 10 history-revealing stops in Cody/Yellowstone Country:
The Irma Hotel
Built by William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody and named after his daughter, the Irma Hotel still hosts overnight guests and feeds hungry travelers. The hotel is an authentic Cody landmark that captures the essence of Western hospitality and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Enjoy the prime rib, check out the fireplace Cody and his friends designed, have a drink at the Cherrywood bar England’s Queen Victoria gifted to her friend Buffalo Bill and tour the old hotel that doubled as Cody’s headquarters.
The Buffalo Bill Center of the West is five museums under one roof.
The Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Tour the five museums that comprise the Buffalo Bill Center of the West. Founded in 1917 to preserve the legacy and vision of Buffalo Bill Cody, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West is the oldest and most comprehensive museum of the American West. Its five museums are the Buffalo Bill Museum, Plains Indian Museum, Whitney Western Art Museum, Cody Firearms Museum and the Draper Natural History Museum. The facility also includes the Harold McCracken Research Library.
Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center is located outside of town.
Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center
Visit the award-winning Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center. Located northeast of Cody, this Japanese-American internment camp housed 14,000 citizens during World War II. Exhibits paint a picture of citizens taken from their homes, uprooted and relocated to an unfamiliar place. A stop in winter is especially poignant as visitors can truly appreciate the bleak conditions endured by incarcerees.
Hemingway’s Local Hotel
The Chamberlin Inn hosted “Ernest Hemingway of Key West, Florida” in 1932 after he completed the manuscript for Death in the Afternoon, and the hotel has the original guest register with his signature to prove it. The author enjoyed fishing the Clarks Fork River by day and swapping stories with the locals in the Irma Bar at night. The room in which Hemingway stayed is available to overnight guests.
Pahaska Tepee
When he wasn’t entertaining the world in his Wild West Show, Buffalo Bill entertained his hunting pals – including Theodore Roosevelt and the Prince of Monaco – at his rustic lodge. Called Pahaska Teepee and located just outside the east entrance to Yellowstone National Park, the log lodge displays many gifts given to Cody by guests. Modern cabins, a restaurant and gift shop make this a great stop for travelers.
The Cody Dug Up Gun Museum features several examples of old firearms found in unusual places.
Cody Dug Up Gun Museum
The fun and family-friendly Cody Dug Up Gun Museum houses a collection of relic guns and weapons throughout American history. This hidden gem is a must-see for travelers interested in the stories about how specific guns were unearthed.
Old Trail Town and Museum of the West
Cabins and gravesites at Old Trail Town and Museum of the Old West in 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.
The Meeteetse Bank Museum
Speaking of Butch Cassidy, he once lived in Meeteetse, and despite his reputation as a prolific and highly successful bank robber, he pledged not to rob the Meeteetse Bank so he and his friends would have a safe place to stash their ill-gotten cash. That bank is now the Meeteetse Bank Museum, and it still displays the original teller’s cage, vault and many other artifacts.
The Buffalo Bill Dam & Visitor Center
The Buffalo Bill Dam was once the tallest concrete dam in the world and a National Civil Engineering Landmark and was operational before Buffalo Bill Cody’s death in 1917. The visitor center’s exhibits show how the dam fulfilled the forward-thinking showman’s goal to bring a reliable water source to the Bighorn Basin.
Historic Cody Mural and Museum
The murals on display at the Cody Mural and Museum located in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints depict the history of Mormon pioneers who immigrated from Utah and Idaho to Wyoming’s Big Horn Basin. There is also the massive Cody Mural on a domed ceiling telling the history of the first 70 years of the church.
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Cody/Yellowstone Country is comprised of the towns of Cody, Powell and Meeteetse, Wyoming as well as the valley east of Yellowstone National Park. The one-time playground of Buffalo Bill Cody, Cody/Yellowstone Country is known for its world-class cultural attractions and recreational adventures. The region hosts nearly 1 million visitors annually.
The destination is home to an array of year-round attractions, and it offers easy access to the East and Northeast gates of Yellowstone National Park. Most visitors to Cody also visit Yellowstone.
Find out more at www.codyyellowstone.org or by connecting on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.
Related hashtags: #YellowstoneCountry #CodyWyoming #CenteroftheWest #BuffaloBill #Yellowstone #Wyoming
Media contact:
Mesereau Travel Public Relations
(970) 286-2751
