Denver plans to halt concession sales at Buffalo Bill’s final resting place

DENVER (KDVR) — Changes are coming to the final resting place of William F. Cody, better known as “Buffalo Bill.”

The Buffalo Bill Museum is owned and operated by the city of Denver (it’s one of the city’s mountain parks), but is located on Lookout Mountain in Golden. According to the city, the museum sees about 80,000 visitors each year. The museum found its current home next to the “Pahaska Tepee” in 1977.

The original Pahaska Tepee is known as Buffalo Bill’s old hunting lodge and it sits near the east entrance of Yellowstone National Park.

According to the museum’s website, Buffalo Bill’s unofficial foster son, Johnny Baker, opened the Pahaska Tepee in the spring of 1921, naming it after the original hunting lodge. After Baker’s death, his wife operated the cafe and shop until she died in 1956, which is when the city bought the property.

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Since then, the city has offered concession contracts with H.W. Stewart to operate the historic building next to the museum. However, the newest five-year contract was signed in 2017, with a two-year contract extension, meaning that the contract ends this year.

According to the city, Denver Parks and Recreation will end the services when the current contract expires. This will not affect the museum’s services, according to the city.

According to Denver Parks and Recreation’s Marketing and Communications Director Yolanda Quesada, there are structural issues at play in the Pahaska Tepee building.

“The building’s current mechanical systems are unable to support the current level of use,” she said via email. “This temporary closure of the city-owned building will reduce various operational impacts to the building’s mechanical systems and will provide access for historic preservation efforts.”

Quesada said the department will work with a historic preservation architect to assess the building in an attempt to better understand maintenance needs, opportunities and limitations.

How did Buffalo Bill end up buried near Denver?

William Cody is known for his “Scouts of the Plains” traveling show, which featured himself as Buffalo Bill and two colleagues as Texas Jack and Wild Bill Hickock. The show featured some of the West’s best skills, including roping, riding and live animal interactions.

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According to the Buffalo Bill Museum’s website, Cody made his way to Colorado during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush, finding his way to Black Hawk and eventually was recruited into an early Pony Express. Cody died in 1917 at his sister’s home in Denver, according to the museum’s information.

Then ensued a fight over where his remains should have their final resting place. Citizens of Cody, Wyoming, insisted he wanted to be buried there, but others claimed that Lookout Mountain was his choice. Either way, Buffalo Bill was laid to rest on Lookout Mountain on June 3, 1917.

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