Birthplace of a Legend - Oakley KS
Posted by: 
PeterNoG
N 39° 07.614 W 100° 52.164
14S E 338409 N 4332522
According to Oakley, Kansas, this is where "Buffalo Bill" got his nickname making this area the birthplace of a legend.
There is a huge statue and lots of information on the signs.
This is NOT where William F. Cody was born.
Waymark Code: WM9CG8
Location: Kansas, United States
Date Posted: 08/01/2010
Views: 32
~ Some of the text from the signs ~
The Great Buffalo Hunt Buffalo Bill's legend was born right here! The site of the legendary buffalo hunt between Buffalo Bill Cody and Medicine Bill Comstock is just ten miles west of where you stand now.
It was the summer of 1868, Bill Cody had just successfully fulfilled a contract to provide meat for Kansas-Pacific Railroad workers. By his own accounting, he had killed 4280 buffalo in just eight months. Cody also worked for the army and was the favorite civilian scout and hunter for the cavalry stationed at Fort Hays.
Soldiers at Fort Wallace favored their own scout, Bill Comstock. Both men were famous for their skill at shooting buffalo from horseback. With the honor of the two posts at stake, the officers are said to have arranged a buffalo hunting contest. To add spice to the event, they put up $500 a side and brought a spectator train to the end of the tracks.
Bison were spotted nearby at monument, and both men galloped among them dividing the herd in two. According to legend, Comstock hunted from the rear forward forcing him to chase his buffalo over miles of prairie. Cody, riding his favorite buffalo-hunting horse, Brigham, rode to the front and circled his herd, shooting the leaders one by one.
By the end of the day - and many cases of champagne later - Cody had won bragging rights. He had brought down 69 buffalo to Comstock's 46. If Buffalo Bill's right to his nickname had ever been in doubt, the issue was now settled.
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