OHS EXTRA! - Pawnee Bill's Wild West Fest

Oklahoma Historical Society sent this bulletin at 09/08/2021 05:00 AM CDT

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History Center Research Museums & Sites Preservation Publications

September 8, 2021

The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum will celebrate the lives of Gordon W. “Pawnee Bill” Lillie and his wife May Lillie and their famous Wild West Shows with a one-day festival on Saturday, September 18, 2021. Pawnee Bill’s Wild West Fest will be held from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the historic original ranch site. Stagecoaches will roll amid thundering horse hooves while the lightning of gunfire explodes around Pawnee Bill, May, and their cohorts as the talented performers thrill and amaze audiences. The festival will feature exhibitions of acts from Pawnee Bill’s Original Wild West Show.

Kevin Webb will portray Pawnee Bill. Webb, a long-time Wild West Show cast member and Pawnee Bill Ranch employee, is also a whip artist and chariot racer. Alyce Webb, Kevin’s wife, will portray May Lillie, performing her act on horseback. This event will include more great performers, such as trick rider Windy Ratchford Lattin, who will demonstrate a complete mastery of her equine companion while performing some of the wildest stunts ever seen. Kalvin “Kowboy Kal” Cook will astound guests with his roping feats and skills. The Mike Pahsetopah family will perform as the Dancing Eagles, paying tribute to American Indian culture with their stunning Native dancing. Show cowboys and cowgirls will be back again this year to demonstrate their skills with reckless feats of horsemanship and entertaining races.

There will be historically accurate entertainment such as blacksmithing, gunfighters and sharpshooters, a medicine man show, and musicians, held continuously on the ranch grounds from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Admission will be taken at the entrance gate to the historic ranch. Food from local food trucks will be available for purchase on-site. For more information, please call 918-762-2513 or email pawneebill@okhistory.org. No tickets can be purchased online or in advance. Admission is $10 for adults; $8 for active military, veterans, and seniors ages 62 and older; $5 for children ages 6–12; and free for children ages 5 and under.

flagbearer beaded leather cuff at Wild West Show

The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum will be open to the public during the festival from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Visitors can tour Pawnee Bill and his wife May’s 14-room mansion, fully furnished with their original belongings. The home, completed in 1910, is filled with Lillie family memorabilia, photographs, original artwork, and more. The ranch property also houses a museum with exhibits related to Pawnee Bill, Wild West Shows, and Pawnee Nation. The 500-acre grounds include the original ranch blacksmith shop, a 1903 log cabin, a large barn built in 1926, and an Indian Flower Shrine.

Locate the Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum site

The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum is on Blue Hawk Peak, land that Pawnee Bill purchased from his Pawnee friend Blue Hawk. Blue Hawk Peak is located one-half mile west of Pawnee on US 64.

Wild West Shows and Performers

"In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when Wild West shows flourished, most Americans thought of Oklahoma as the Wild West. It had been Indian Territory, and encroachment there by miners and cattlemen had precipitated conflicts between American Indians and the intruders. Then came the frenzied 1889 land rush into Oklahoma Territory. Oklahomans took pride in their roughhewn past, but they also sought acceptance as a settled part of the United States, deserving respect from the business community and the rest of the nation."

Click here to read the full article.

Paul Reddin, “Wild West Shows and Performers,” The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.

Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum Online Store

The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum online store is an extension of the site’s museum store, which provides support for the operation of the Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum. Get your Pawnee Bill's Wild West Fest t-shirt today!

Home on the Range

Issue three of Crossroads takes its subject matter from the Pawnee Bill Ranch and the visionary efforts of Pawnee Bill Lillie to conserve the American bison after being a witness to the near decimation of the species. Today, a herd of bison, longhorn, and several draft horses call the Pawnee Bill Ranch home and can often be found grazing in the drive-through exhibit pasture on the historic property.

Hear the voice of Pawnee Bill

This podcast includes a number of archived episodes that delve into the life and legacy of Pawnee Bill.

In 1939, at the age of 79, Pawnee Bill gave an interview at WKY radio. Listen to Pawnee Bill's interview to hear him discuss outlaws of the American West and his time as an entertainer.

OHS Film and Video Archives

Watch rare film footage featuring Buffalo Bill's and Pawnee Bill's Wild West Show taken in 1898, 1902, and 1910 by Blackhawk Films, the film company shared by Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill.

OHS COVID-19 safety measures

Per CDC guidance, we recommend that visitors who have not yet received a COVID-19 vaccination wear face masks and maintain social distancing in indoor public areas. All visitors, staff, volunteers, contractors, and vendors should continue to use appropriate handwashing techniques.

We ask that you avoid visiting OHS museums, sites, and affiliates if you have COVID-19, are experiencing symptoms, have a fever, or are otherwise feeling sick or unwell.