Silver Dollar "shot-through" by Buffalo Bill

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This past December I had to opportunity to visit the Buffalo Bill Museum and grave site in Golden, Colorado. It was a great experience I recommend to anybody interested in western history. As a note, I took all of the pictures in the post during my visit to the museum.

While viewing the exhibits in the museum I was able to see a silver dollar that Buffalo Bill shot through with his revolver during a public demonstration. This coin is one-of-a-kind. Its connection with Buffalo Bill makes it a really neat piece of American numismatic history.

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For anybody unfamiliar with the history of Buffalo Bill I have included a brief summary in the following paragraphs:

Buffalo Bill, was born William Frederick Cody on February 26, 1846 in what is today the state of Iowa. During his lifetime, Cody briefly contracted himself with the Kansas Pacific Railroad as a bison hunter in order to supply the company's workmen with bison meat. He earned his famous nickname "Buffalo Bill" by killing 4,860 bison in the short span of only eight months from 1867-1868.

During the Civil War, Cody served as a Union soldier. Later, during the Plains Indian Wars he served as a civilian Chief of Scouts for the Third Cavalry. In this capacity he was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1872 for "gallantry in action". Later in his life Cody claimed to have also worked as a trapper, bullwhacker, gold prospector, a Pony Express rider, wagonmaster, stagecoach driver and hotel manager. Of course, he was most famous for his world renowned Wild West Shows.

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The popularity of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show during the late 1800s and early 1900s cannot be understated. This was a period when the "wild" west was rapidly disappearing and the American public responded by romanticizing the period. Buffalo Bill's show toured in the United States and even made several tours abroad.

It is during the later period of his life that Cody reportedly shot this silver dollar. Cody passed away in 1917 in Denver, Colorado. He requested in his will that he be buried on Lookout Mountain on the edge of the Rockies.

For more information on Buffalo Bill visit the museum's website at: www.buffalobill.org


Buffalo Bill's Grave on Lookout Mountain:

 

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It looks like the bullet is still in the shell, but the primer is dimpled. Cool dollar pic though !

 

I think somebody took the fired bullet casing home as a souvenir after the show and later added their own lead to "complete" the look of the bullet. Also, the provenance of the bullet casing is less secure than the actual coin.

 

Great story!

 

Interesting. I too noticed the bullet was still in the shell. Odd that they would make that mistake attemting to show the shell used to make that hole in the coin and although the primer was fired, the slub, bullet, was still intack. or are they attemting to say that after he shot the coin, they recovered the bullet and replaced it in the shell?
I sometimes wonder about stories like that. Who was smart enough to find that dollar, put it away, passed on to someone, with the bullet and slug? Note the statement shell reportedly from his last shot. Not sure what that ment. He never shot a gun again?
Still interesting.
On a program called History Detectives not long ago they were attempting to find out if a coin someone had was shot by Annie Oakly. That too was interesting.

 

Oh Gosh, I can see the Chinese lining up counterfeit Morgans to shoot and make "authentic Annie Oakly" coins. HSN, what a deal!

 

I would interpret the sign at the museum to mean that this is a dollar he shot, which would not have been so rare in his lifetime because (I have read) it was part of the show and would have been a great souvenier even then. The sign implies that MAYBE the shell casing was his last shot. Note that even the museum says the cartridge is "reportedly" from his last shot, not much of a claim. Glad the coin is protected.

 

It's a great place to visit if you are in the area! Here is a close up of the back side of the Tomb Stone.

 

Great Story!

Great story and thanks for posting the pictures. Nothing better than history and numismatics!!

 

Agreed, one of the main reasons I enjoy collecting coins to much.:high5:

Nice post, would love to see that one day.

 

wow.....really cool and historical

 

I wonder what a prez dollar would look like if I shot it with my 54 caliber.

 

Nice story. I wonder how many times he missed the silver dollar. Could he have taken a page from Chris Angel and used a slight of hand to replace the missed dollar with one up his sleeve with a hole in it? I'm a skeptic by nature.

 

This was an interesting write up. I've been by his birth place many times down in Scott County right off I-80.

I think Phil may be onto something here though.

I REALLY question whether that particular shell, or any pistol from that time period would shoot clean through a silver dollar like that. Depending on how it was shot. If it was shot in the air by 'anything' in that time period, there's no way I would believe it could be shot through like that because I don't think the bullets traveled fast enough. It would glance off before going all the way through. And there would be no hiding it or tricking people. The silver dollar would go flying off! (Unless there was an already 'shot through' one as you say Phil)

If held in place by something, a large rifle bullet might have done it. A pistol cartridge such as this I wouldn't believe though. Is that a .45LC? I'll prove it if you guys want. I own a .45LC. I'll shoot a Morgan and we'll find out. I'll even load up some hotter rounds and get over 1,000 FPS out of them. Compared to the 600-800 FPS the shells probably were that they used at the time.

Now, a modern day .223 round at 3,200 FPS would go through a Morgan like butter. I've put holes through 1/4" steel with them. But that's a long ways from an old, slow moving, .45 cowboy round. Silver may be softer than steel but I can't believe it's that soft. Could be wrong.

(Sorry to be the wet blanket! )

 

Yeah, I got the same feeling that they were implying it was just his last shot cartridge. Not necessarily the one that shot that coin. And somebody just stuffed a slug in there to show what it would have looked like.

 

Anybody know the date and mintmark on the coin?

 

GD, are you related to Buffalo Bill? My geat(4) grandmother was Mary Cody. So, i think we are distant cousins!