Letter from William F. Cody to George T. Beck, October 8, 1896Cody, William Frederick, 1846-1917Johnston, JeremyChristianson, FrankSeefeldt, Douglas, 1964-Supported in part by a grant from the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, a program of the Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources.2013William F. Cody ArchiveUniversity of Nebraska-LincolnCenter for Digital Research in the Humanities319 Love LibraryUniversity of Nebraska–LincolnLincoln, NE 68588-4100cdrh@unlnotes.unl.eduLincoln, NebraskaUniversity of Nebraska-LincolnLincoln, NE 68588-4100wfc.css00515BBWW performed in Carroll, Iowa, on October 8, 1896. George B. Harris (d.1918) was second vice-president of CB&Q and became president of the company in 1901 until his resignation in 1910; Harris then became Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until 1918. Cody used a capital "L" in place of the word "Hell." Elwood Mead, state engineer of Wyoming and key in drafting water laws for Wyoming and Colorado from 1888 to 1899, was head of the Bureau of Reclamation from 1924 until his death in 1936. The "ex mayor of Dubuque" was Charles J. W. Saunders (d. 1939, Mayor of Dubuque from 1891-1892), a friend of WFC's, Texas Jack, and Wild Bill Hickok; Saunders likely met WFC in Kansas toward the end of the Civil War. At the urging of Saunders, BBWW performed in Dubuque (where Saunders owned a meat market) about every four years until 1912.
[See http://www.encyclopediadubuque.org/index.php?title=SAUNDERS%2C_Charles_J.W. ] Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.Cody, William Frederick, 1846-1917Letter from William F. Cody to George T. BeckOctober 8, 18962 pagesUniversity of Wyoming, American Heritage Center, Buffalo Bill Letters to George T. Beck (Acc. #9972)ah031417-18
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TextsCorrespondenceBuffalo Bill's WyomingBeck, George Washington Thornton, 1856-1943Weakly, Laura K. Initial encodingHouze, Lynn ProofingJohnston, Jeremy ProofingClark, Linda ProofingBoyce, Gary TranscriptionAdams, Deb TranscriptionBuffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders.of the World.John M. Burke. General Manager.Albert E. Sheible, Business Manager.Jule Keen, Treasurer. Carroll— Ia1
Oct 82Dear George,
Say. now be careful or you will have a hemoragehemorrhage at this news— Alger has written me. And I now know what I have to meet to save the credit of the Co— Whether I can do it or not is to be seen— I haventhaven't weakened a little bit. but its L3 when all the rest have— I have asked Mead to go out and give us an estimate on north side proposition. If he comes rig him out with help and what he needs quick so as not to detain him— We want to make all the
Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders.of the World.John M. Burke. General Manager.Albert E. Sheible, Business Manager.Jule Keen, Treasurer.
bluff4 we can this month Every thing goes in a county seat fight— So dontdon't be afraid to Exagerate— Even to lieinglying Tell them Mead is coming Yes & I think your friend Geo B. Harris5 of the Burlington6 will be with me totoo— I understand the Northern Pacific7 will soon commence work up Clarks fork8— I will have with me two men from this Town9 to look over our lands for a Colony— also two from Dubuque10— one of them is the ex mayor of Dubuque— I will have a big party.
CodyNote 1: Buffalo Bill's Wild West performed in Carroll, Iowa, on October 8, 1896. Note 2: The year is not inscribed by Cody but is 1896.Note 3: Cody substitutes a capital "L" for hell. Note 4: Cody urges Beck to "bluff" to leverage for Cody, Wyoming, to become the county seat.Note 5: George B. Harris (d. 1918) was second vice-president of CB&Q and became president of the company in 1901 until his resignation in 1910; Harris then became Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until 1918. Note 6: Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.Note 7: In 1897 the Northern Pacific Railway connected the tracks to Fromberg, Montana, to reach the coal fields in the area.Note 8: "Clarks Fork" is presumed to be the tributary of the Yellowstone River but may imply the larger river valley.Note 9: It is not clear to what town Cody is referring.Note 10: The "ex mayor of Dubuque" was Charles J. W. Saunders (d. 1939, Mayor of Dubuque from 1891-1892), a friend of Cody, John B. "Texas Jack" Omohundro, and James B. "Wild Bill" Hickok. Saunders likely met Cody in Kansas toward the end of the Civil War. At Saunders' urging, Buffalo Bill's Wild West performed in Dubuque five times between 1896 and 1912.