Lariat Loop Byway: Buffalo Bill Museum·When William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody visited Lookout Mountain park, he was impressed by the view of mountains and plains. He told his wife Louisa, daughter Irma, foster son Johnny Baker, and others that he would like to be buried up here. After his death in 1917, his family had him buried in Lookout Mountain Park in accordance with his wishes. Cody's gravesite soon became a popular destination. In 1921 Johnny Baker opened a museum, gift shop and restaurant in a building he called "Pahaska Tepee." Pahaska, meaning "Long Hair," had been the Lakota nickname for Buffalo Bill.

Johnny Baker's museum contained many artifacts that had belonged to Buffalo Bill, as well as posters and other materials Baker collected over the thirty years he performed with Buffalo Bill's Wild West. Friends of Buffalo Bill, former performers with the Wild West and people who had seen the show added to this collection. In 1979 the museum was moved out of Pahaska Tepee into its own building. Today the Buffalo Bill Museum, Pahaska Tepee gift shop and cafe, and Buffalo Bill's grave are all part of a complex owned and operated by the City of Denver Parks and Recreation Department. Exhibits about Buffalo Bill and the Old West can be enjoyed in the Museum while gift items and food can be purchased in Pahaska Tepee.

Interpretive panels were funded in part by the Federal Highway Administration, Denver Mountain Parks Foundation, and the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District.Last picture assigned 3047

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