Travel Tips & Trends

Buffalo Bill: the man with two graves?

Each year, thousands of people visit the Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave on Lookout Mountain in Golden. However, some residents of Cody, Wyoming now claim the famous 19th-century showman is actually buried on Cedar Mountain overlooking their town.

William "Buffalo Bill" Cody (1846–1917) was once regarded as the best-known person in the world. His traveling Wild West Show helped shape popular ideas of the American West during its incredibly profitable 30-year run. Cody died while visiting relatives in Denver in 1917.

In recent years, the story has spread that three Wyoming men drove to Denver before the burial, where they secretly swapped Buffalo Bill's body for that of an anonymous ranch hand. After returning home and burying their town hero, the trio rustled up a caravan of 100 cars, in which a small army of angry Cody residents headed for Denver. This spurred Coloradans to hastily bury their body on Lookout Mountain, and pour 20 tons of concrete on top of the casket for good measure—ensuring nobody would ever know the true identity of the man buried there.

Perhaps it's fitting that the great showman provided the world with one last tale of adventure, even in death. But is it true?

Unlikely, says Steve Friesen, director of the Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave. "Mrs. Cody ordered an open casket during Buffalo Bill's burial. Nearly 20,000 persons in attendance at the burial ceremony, including his friends and relatives, all had a chance to see the old scout."

Friesen says the grave on Lookout Mountain was a simple pile of stones for nearly a year before the fence and large headstone were added. The concrete was poured in 1927, a decade later, when Cody's foster son decided to improve the look of the site.

The Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave is on Lookout Mountain Road, part of the Lariat Loop Scenic Byway, 30 minutes from downtown Denver. The 40-mile loop drive connects the foothills towns of Morrison, Evergreen and Golden.

If Buffalo Bill's final resting place is in Wyoming, the exact location is a closely guarded secret. Cody townsfolk say it is on private property somewhere on Cedar Mountain, but as with any good legend, the details must be left up to the imagination.

Find out more

Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, Wyo.: 307-587-4771, www.bbhc.org.

Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave, Golden, Colo.: 303-526-0744, www.buffalobill.org.

Cody, Wyo.: 307-587-2297, www.yellowstonecountry.org

Golden, Colo.: 303-279-3113, www.goldencochamber.org

Lariat Loop Scenic Byway, Colo.: www.lariatloop.org