Kansas Farm Journal, 25 Mar 1926 Manhattan, Kansas
Matt Barrigan oil Saline county, reputed to have killed the last bison (“buffalo”) that roamed the Kansas plains, a pioneer and a crack shot, died recently from injuries in a motor accident caused by dazzling lights.
Yellowstone National Park Ad July 7 1926
Harrisburg Telegraph
Harrisburg Pennsylvania Aug 11 1926
The thrilling life and adventures
of
Buffalo Bill
“BUFFALO ,BILL UNSLUNG HIS RIFLE, AND, BALANCING HIMSELF, TURNED HALF ROUND. AND FIRED, AND, DOWN TO THE GROUND DROPPED THE LEADING BISON
BUFFALO BILL has always been one of America’s outstanding heroes. His youthful adventures, his prowess as a hunter, his skill as a horseman and rifle shot, and his uncanny ability as a scout made him indispensable to the officers of the U. S. Army when the West was being won for civilization;
His personal bravery always made him a heroic figure in the days when he was active in outwitting” Indians, or bringing outlaws to justice, and every man and boy of that time thrilled at. his name and exploits.
After the Custer Massacre at the Battle of the Little Big Horn, “Buffalo Bill” was made Chief of Scouts of the U. S. Army with the rank of Colonel by General Merritt.
“ I can ride, shoot and herd cattle,” said eleven – year – old Willie Cody of Salt Creek Valley, Kansas, when he applied for the job as wagon – boy in Russel, Majors and Waddell’s “covered wagon” service in 1858.
At seven he had seen his brother killed by a plunging horse, at eight he rode guard with his father, as his mother and five sisters rode across the plains.
At nine, he had stood, paralyzed with fright as his father was stabbed with a bowie’ knife by Pro – Slavery men.
At eleven his father died, and Willie Cody took up the support of a consumptive mother and five sisters.
That courageous lad. typical of the pioneers, who fought Wild Animals, Outlaws and Indians, lived to see the day when kings were glad to greet him upon a footing of equality, when he would be worshiped by every youth of a nation, and mourned as the greatest builder that the West had ever known.
Courtney Ryley Cooper, who was his friend and associate for many years, has gathered together the threads of the life of “Buffalo Bill” and tells his story faithfully, with all its exciting adventures on the trail and plains
Col. Cody was challenged on the field of battle by Yellowhand, one of the fiercest of Indian warriors. The challenge was met instantly by Cody, who rode forth to what became a hand to hand conflict, Cody killing Yellowhand and in his frenzy scalping the Indian and fearlessly waving the scalp before the assembled Indian tribes as they moved forward to attack the plainsmen and soldiers.
COURTNEY RYLEY COOPER, who was the friend arid associate of “Buffalo Bill,” has written his recollections of the LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF BUFFALO BILL in a series of thrilling and exciting articles.
Arrangements have been made whereby Bulletin readers shall have the opportunity of reading these great episodes in the life of their country.
This series of stories of the dangers and perils of the hardy men who braved the redskin and the outlaw of the Wild West
Will be printed in daily installments exclusively in
The Chening Bulletin
PHILADELPHIA
beginning tomorrow. Thursday August 12th
If you are not now getting The Bulletin, tell your news – Carrier to be sure to serve you with this newspaper regularly starting Thursday, August 12th, so you can read “The Life of Buffalo Bill.” 12c a week by carrier. By mail 30c monthly; $6.00 yearly.
Readers who are unable to obtain THE BULLETIN are requested to notify the Circulation Department. . Phones: Bell, Locust 4100
Evening Star
Washington D.C. August 31 1926
The American buffalo or bison in Yellowstone Park number 800 and are fed during the winter months by rangers. Nearly 1,000 tons of hay are grown each year to feed the buffalo.
The Independent
Elizabeth City, North Carolina Sept 3 1926
Bison of Mixed Breed
The American bison is the one existing species of the European wild ox. Bos (bison) bonasus, known in Russia as a zuhr, together with the nearly allied New world animal known in Europe as the North American bison, but in its own country as the buffalo. The American bison is distinguished from its European cousin by the following other features: The hind quarters are weaker and fall away more suddenly, while the withers are proportionately higher; especially characteristic is the great mass of brown or blackish-brown hair clothing its head, neck and forepart of the body; the shape of the skull and horns is also different, the horns being shorter, thicker, blunter and more sharply curved, while the forehead of the skull is more convex, and the sockets of the eyes are more distinctly tubular.
McKinney Weekly Democrat Gazette
McKinney Texas Oct 7 1926
BUFFALO IN SONG AND STORY IN AMERICA’S EARLY SETTLEMENT; DR. ESTES SECURES ANOTHER FOR ZOO
McKinney Zoo Will Soon Have Two “ Monarchs of the Range” in Its List of Attraction; Zoo Is Having a Rapid Growth.
Buffalo were the monarchs of the American wild game until comparatively recent years. They are now found only in protected birds in national, state, the municipal or private parks and game preserves. They thrive in captivity and multiply about as rapidly as do cattle.
Collin County now has only one buffalo – in Finch Park zoo which was secured from Yellowstone National Park through the efforts of John E Wilson who raised nearly $400 to get it here and have prepared a suitable enclosure for the animal. Through the efforts of Dr. Chas. W Estes, our local zoo is too soon to get another buffalo. It has been promised Dr. Estes free for the Finch Park zoo. Probably within the next few days visitors at Finch sparks new may see to instead of only one buffalo as present.
The buffalo and the American Indian are associated together in history, legend and song. Young people, and old too, never tire of reading about the buffalo the monarch of broad prairies and the early woodlands.
The American Bison
The American bison is interesting as the only species of the ox family indigenous to America except the musk-ox of the subarctic regions. It is commonly called buffalo by the Anglo-Americans, although it is very different from the buffalo of the old world.
It was formerly in vast numbers in the great prairies between the Mississippi and the Rocky Mountains of which region Texas is a part. The American bison ranged as far north as the vicinity of the great Marton Lake in latitude 63 or 64. The extensive level, marshy tracts (here afforded suitable food although buffalo was never found anywhere else at so high a latitude.
The American bison or buffalo had its southern limit along the Rio Grande and New Mexico. They were comparatively rare west of the Rocky Mountains and were also rarely found east of the Appalachians. Even in the first settlements in New England and along the Atlantic coast. Europeans did not come in contact with the buffalo. In the Western and Southwestern prairies enormous herds congregated. The plains were sometimes spotted and darkened with them as far as the eye could reach. Countless thousands were to be seen coming to refresh themselves at pools and along the streams and paths in some parts of the unsettled prairies and forest were almost as conspicuous as the roads in the most populous part of the United States.
Indians Favored Meat
Primitive Indians subsisted almost entirely on the flash of the bison. They employed the spear and the bow and arrow as weapons in their buffalo hunts. They later used fire arms when they could procure them. The Indians pursued the buffalo on horse back but the Hunter, whether on horse back or on foot, often had much difficulty in getting within shot because of the keenness of scent and the speed of the wild buffalo. A buffalo chase was more or less dangerous as the animal often became ferocious and was apt to turn upon an adversary and even a fleet horse could not always escape his charge. At times the coming Indian killed numbers of buffalo with the use after the Hunter had succeeded in turning the herd which scattered over the plane in confusion so that they would run wildly without heating whither. Another expedient of the wily Indian was to set fire to the grass of the prairie around them when the buffalo would retire in great consternation to the center and were then easily slaughtered. A sort of pound or inclosure was sometimes made with a long avenue leading into it and an embankment of snow such that when the animals descended it they could not return and by this means great numbers were often captured and killed. Other times Indians contrived stampede the buffalo and make them run towards a precipice over which many of the foremost would be driven by the crowds that thronged up behind.
The American bison is very similar to the European cousin called the buffalo. In general the American species is of a rather small size but this was not always the case. The American bison or buffalo sometimes attained to the weight of a times or to thousand pounds. It slims and tail are sort detailed consist of you are vertebrae. The Hornets are shorter and are blunt. The four parts are still more shaggy and retain more of their shakiness and summer.
Wolf and Bear Foe Buffalo.
The Wolf was quite unable to contend with the bison but many wolves often hanged around the herd to devour That might stray or aged animals which had become too weak to keep up with the rest. Whole pacts of hungry wolves would attack and deal death to Cavs and the less vigorous older animals. Often, many of the wolves would be killed before the buffalo was compelled to yield to numbers of hunger pertinacity. The only American animal that was singularly capable of overcoming the American bison was the grizzly bear.
The flash of the American Buffalo is very good differs from the ox or ordinary beef cattle and having a sort of wild venison labor. The home of the buffalo in particular was esteemed a delicacy. The flash of the buffalo provided food for the first hunters and northern voyageurs partook of the flash and the fat of the bison while its high or per made their clothing. Their tallow formed an important article of trade in pioneer days. One bowl sometimes would yield 150 pounds of tallow. The Indians use these buffalo skins for blankets and when can, the scans made coverings for their lodges and bed. Blankets and bedding were not infrequently sold for three or four pounds of sterling in Canada for use as traveling codes or wrappers in the extremely cold regions. The Indians sometimes made canoes of buffalo skin spread upon the wicker work frames. The long hair or lease of the buffalo was sometimes woven cloth. Some of it was formerly shipped to England and woven very cloth. Stockings and gloves were embedded from it. A buffalo bull or mail sometimes would yield from six to eight pounds of this law valuable hair.
Protected Buffalo Herds.
Efforts in the last thirty or forty years to domesticate the American bison had met with success. The animals are protected on a number of large government reserves where they live on the native grass and forest and multiply.
The big government forest, game and fish preserve at Wichita, Oklahoma has one of these government protected herds. It contains about three hundred animals. It is from this herd that Dr. Estes succeeded in getting a-year-old bull donated free to the municipality of McKinney. The animal will soon be brought here and placed with its meet already in captivity in Finch Park Zoo.
* 1929 an article says “a buffalo” Dr Chas. W. Estes
*The park actually opened in 1916 and added the zoo later. The zoo opened in the 1920’s and closed in 1934-35 because of the Depression. The zoo was a major tourist attraction for the city.
*Henry Finch represented this area in the Texas Legislature and was a Senator for two sessions. He was Mayor of McKinney from 1917 to 1925. He gave land for Finch Park in 1911
1926 – Finch Park zoo now a top attraction.
1937 – Collin McKinney’s pioneer home moved to Finch Park, (where it later was lost to a December 1980 fire).
The Evening Sun
Baltimore Maryland Oct 13 1926
MONTANA BISON BONES ARE 25.000 YEARS OLD
Species In Ice Age Held Similar To Modern Buffalo.
Wolf Point, .Mont., Oct 13. When the Wolf Point city well was dug nearly a year ago, at a depth of between eighty and ninety feet fossil vertebras were found, and these were sent to the Smithsonian Institution of the United States National Museum at Washington, D. C, for classification. The fossils were found in a stratum of blue clay.
Recently a letter was received from Dr. J. W. Gidley, assistant curator of mammalian fossils, stating that these fossils belonged to a species of bison or buffalo which existed in this section during the glacial period.
Similar To Modern Ones.
As this period, geologically, is comparatively recent, the animals of that time were very similar to those of recent times.
According to the letter of Dr. Gidley, the bison whose bones were found must have roamed this section of the globe some time before the last ice invasion.
Like Buffaloes.
Dr. Gidley says : “The bones belong to an extinct species of bison much like the Western buffalo living today. It is a dorsal vertebra carrying one of the long spines which form the ‘hump’ of the bison. The lack of complete union of the joint ends shows that this was a young individual when, death overtook him, probably about two or three years old.
“The specimens belong to the Pleistocene, or so-called ‘Ice Age,’ the geological period preceding the present time, and may, therefore, be anywhere from 25,000 to several hundred thousand years old. Some of the bison of this period had very long horns, reaching a spread of eight or more feet.”