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North Platte, Nebraska, was the hometown of Wild West showman Buffalo Bill Cody and an important railroad town.
Overview of North Platte, Nebraska
North Platte was founded in 1866 when the Union Pacific tracks reached the area. It was the railroad’s western terminus from December 1866 until the tracks were extended to Ogallala the following year. In 1878, Buffalo Bill Cody established Scout’s Rest Ranch just north of town.
Racial tensions exploded on July 13, 1929, when a black man, Louis Seeman, shot and killed a white police officer, Ed Green, after being asked to leave town. Seeman, who was hiding in a chicken coop, was cornered by a mob and killed by a gunshot reported as a suicide. This event led to white mobs ordering black residents to leave the city. Although the numbers are disputed, many fled — some on foot without being able to gather their belongings.
Later, the North Platte Canteen became one of the largest volunteer efforts during World War II. Beginning in 1941, tens of thousands of volunteers met the 7 million servicemen who passed through town, offering coffee, sandwiches, dessert, and hospitality.
North Platte is a decent place to stop for a day, with a few interesting places to visit. Check out the town’s official website for more info on what to do or special events taking place.
Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park
North Platte is billed as the hometown of Buffalo Bill Cody (1846–1917). In 1878, the Wild West showman purchased 160 acres just outside North Platte with the intention of retiring there. He ended up acquiring nearly 4,000 acres. Cody’s wife Louisa (1844–1921) and their daughters moved there in February 1878, and they invited friends, family, and celebrities to visit. Al and Julia Goodman, his sister and brother-in-law, managed the ranch.
By 1885, the ranch had grown to employ 60 men during the busy season and 30 during the slow season, managing high-grade livestock, thoroughbreds, and crops. The southern portion of the ranch became a wooded park with deer and buffaloes and was called Scout’s Rest Ranch.
Cody sold the ranch in 1911. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission acquired it in 1964 to create Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park, which covers 25 acres and features four original structures. The ranch was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 30, 1978, and was designated a National Historic Landmark on January 13, 2021.
The grounds are open year-round and private vehicles require a Nebraska State Park vehicle permit. Prices are current as of April 2025:
- Daily permits are $14 for vehicles with out-of-state plates, or $7 for Nebraska plates.
- Annual permits are $70 for vehicles with out-of-state plates, or $35 for Nebraska plates.
Mansion at Scout’s Rest Ranch
In 1886, Cody hired Patrick Walsh to build a two-story, nine-room mansion. After it was completed, Cody named the ranch Scout’s Rest.
The Second Empire-style mansion is open for self-guided tours from May through October, Wednesday through Sunday, from 9am to 5pm. The rest of the year, it’s open by appointment only. Admission is $5 for adults age 13+, $1 for kids age 3–12, and free for kids under 3 (as of April 2025). Inside, the rooms are decorated with period furniture, clothing, and items commonly used during the late 19th century.
Cody left his sister Julia in charge of the planning and asked that the mansion be completed in six months. He requested the porches be 10 feet wide rather than the standard 3 feet, and the latest style in carpeting along with elegant furniture for the downstairs rooms. The addition at the back of the house was built in 1909 and included a kitchen and pantry.
Museum
Some rooms of the mansion are set aside as a museum. Displays contain exhibits with photographs, personal belongings of Cody and his family, and memorabilia from the Wild West show.
Some of the unique items are Russian Cossack uniforms and bolos used by Argentinian performers as well as a stock certificate for Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Company. Artifacts and an account of Cody entertaining Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia (1850–1908) in 1872 fills one of the displays.
Another section features the personal belongings of Iron Tail (1857–1955), an Oglala Lakota chief who began traveling with the Wild West Show in March 1891. When he died, he was the last survivor of both the Battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876 and Wounded Knee in 1890. Cody was quoted as saying “Iron Tail is the finest man I have ever known, bar none”.
Outbuildings
Behind the mansion is the ice house, which was built alongside it in 1886 to store ice harvested in the winter. The spring house, a stone construction built partially underground, used water from a natural spring to keep fruits, vegetables, and dairy products fresh during the summer. The cob house was used for storing corn cobs used to burn in stoves.
Barn at Scout’s Rest Ranch
The barn was built in 1887. It measures 148 feet long, 70 feet wide, and 40 feet high, and required seven railroad cars of lumber for its construction. An ace of hearts with a bullet hole, the trademark of sharpshooter Annie Oakley, decorates the peak of the roof.
The barn was originally used to house horses needed for working the ranch. Another barn located to the east was used for cattle, but it burned down in 1904.
Inside, you’ll find original posters from the Wild West show — including fragments of posters glued to the wall by Buffalo Bill himself — along with wagons and equipment.
A Pony Express historical marker place by the Pony Express Centennial Association is also in the barn. Cody started his career as a Pony Express rider in 1860, starting out of Julesburg, Colorado, and later running the route between Red Buttes and Three Crossings.
Bison Corral
A bison corral is a short walk east of the barn. The American bison, or buffalo, once roamed much of North America and exceeded over 60 million animals.
Buffalo Bill earned his famous nickname in 1867, when he was hired to supply buffalo meat for Kansas Pacific Railway workers in Kansas. He was paid $500 a month, and in eight months had killed 4,280 buffaloes.
By 1878, buffalo numbers had been decimated, depriving the Plains Indians of their main source of food. The last buffalo was killed in Kansas the following year, and in Nebraska in 1883.
The American bison was nearly extinct by 1900 when a campaign was launched for their preservation, with President Theodore Roosevelt supporting the cause. The first refuges were established at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma and the National Bison Refuge in Montana, with more areas set aside later. More buffaloes thrive on private ranches and public parks.
Cody-North Cabin
A few steps north of the barn is a cabin used as a headquarters by Cody and his business partners, Frank (1840–1885) and Luther North. They founded a ranch in 1877 about 65 miles north of North Platte along the Dismal River. North purchased cattle from Ogallala and hired cowboys to run the ranch while Cody was on tour. The ranch grew to about 4,000 acres and was bought out by John Bratt in 1882.
The cabin was relocated to the Bratt Ranch in 1882, and purchased by Nate Trego, who moved it to his ranch in Tryon, Nebraska. The family of May Tragus later donated it to the park.
Lincoln County Historical Museum
Near Buffalo Bill State Historical Park is the Lincoln County Historical Museum. This wonderful volunteer-run museum chronicles the history of North Platte and Lincoln County. Adult admission is $7 (as of April 2023). It’s open daily from May through September.
The most important section of the museum covers World War II and the North Platte Canteen. It was a volunteer effort used to feed soldiers who passed through North Platte during the war. From Christmas Day in 1941 until April 1, 1946, volunteers served food and entertained over 7 million servicemen and women. Everything was donated.
Another section touches up the city’s first canteen, the American Red Cross Canteen, from 1918 to 1919. Red Cross workers offered food and hospitality to over 100,000 soldiers out of the old Union Pacific office building.
Village at the Lincoln County Historical Museum
Behind the museum building is a small “village” of historical buildings collected from all over the county. It consists of several historic homes and functional buildings, including an original building from Fort McPherson, which stood near North Platte from 1863 to 1880.
Other buildings include a schoolhouse, a gas station, some homes, and various businesses. One of them is Dick Neve’s Barber Shop from 1900.
Hoagland Cabin
Another building is the Hoagland Cabin, which was built in 1869 by William F. Hoagland, the first homesteader in Lincoln County.
Fredricksen Home
The Fredricksen Home was built at 315 West 3rd Street in 1899. It was designed by Fred Fredricksen and has barely changed since it was built. 90% of the furnishings are original to the house. Downstairs are four rooms plus a pantry and a bathroom.
There are four bedrooms upstairs along with a maid’s room — the maid had her own stairway. One of the rooms features original wallpaper.
William Jeffers Boyhood Home
Also in the village is the small boyhood home of William Jeffers (1937–1953), who began as a call boy at Union Pacific Railroad and rose to serve as its president from 1937 to 1946.
Brady Island Depot
The Brady Island Depot served the town of Brady starting in the 19th century. In 1866, Brady was the end of the line for Union Pacific. The building was purchased by Jim Connelly and donated to the Lincoln County Museum in 1976.
The depot consists of three rooms. The first is the waiting room where passengers would purchased tickets and wait for their train. Inside you’ll find items typically used by passengers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
On the other side of the window is the depot agent’s office, with objects used during the period that depot agent Harry Dart worked there. In the east room, which was used to store freight passing through the depot, you’ll see tools used by early railroad workers.
In front of the Brady Island Depot you’ll notice the original Union Pacific shield from the North Platte Depot, from March 20, 1918, to November 1, 1973. There’s also a UP locomotive bell welded to various railroad tools, made by Walter Carlyle in 1998.
Church
Golden Spike Tower
North Platte has always been linked to the railroad industry. It was the western terminus of the Union Pacific Railway in 1867 for one year. Today, it is the home of the largest railroad yard in the world, Bailey Yard. The Golden Spike Tower allows visitors to view the yard daily from 9am to 5pm. Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors age 62+, $6 for kids age 6-16, and free for kids under 6 (as of April 2025).
There’s a small museum and video on the ground floor. An elevator to the 7th and 8th floors take you to viewing platforms. On the 8th floor, a volunteer is on hand to explain what’s happening in the yard at any given moment.
Fort Cody Trading Post
A kitschy site at the highway exit to North Platte is the Fort Cody Trading Post, which has been a roadside attraction since 1963. This huge souvenir store contains an Old West museum full of oddities and a mechanical scale model of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show that runs on the half hour. Behind Fort Cody is an outdoor area with some log cabins, wagons, and a giant Indian. Admission is free (as of April 2025) and it’s open daily year-round.
Downtown North Platte
The historic downtown of North Platte isn’t much to see. The most interesting buildings are the old Fox Theatre and the Pawnee Hotel.
Where to Stay in North Platte, Nebraska
We spent one night in town.
America’s Best Value Inn
We stayed at the America’s Best Value Inn. It had clean and comfortable rooms and a swimming pool. Breakfast was not included. Wifi was ok.
Where to Eat in North Platte, Nebraska
During our visit we had breakfast and lunch.
Daylight Donuts
We had a quick breakfast at the local chain of Daylight Donuts. We weren’t too impressed.
Penny’s Diner
Our lunch was at the Oak Tree Inn’s Penny’s Diner. It was alright.
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