Elaine Warner
EDMOND — The story of Pawnee Bill and May Lillie would make a great movie — but no one would believe it. Scenes would range from Main Line Philadelphia to open prairie, from mansions to a log cabin; and characters would include members of high society, European heads of state, Indian elders and Arabian acrobats. The closest you’ll come to getting the whole story is making a visit to the Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum.
Illinois-born Gordon Lillie grew up in southern Kansas and, as a boy, became acquainted with Pawnee Indians who made a winter camp nearby. The Indians were being removed from their lands in Nebraska to a new home in the future state of Oklahoma. Later, Lillie visited the Pawnees, traveling with them on their annual buffalo hunt, and learning their language and customs. Respected by the tribal members, he was given the name “Pawnee Bill.”
In 1883, entrepreneur and showman Buffalo Bill wrote the Pawnee agency looking for Indians to join his Wild West show. The 23-year-old Pawnee Bill and six Pawnees accepted the invitation.
It was at a parade in Philadelphia that teenage May Manning spotted Pawnee Bill in his buckskins and laughed at him. “It was love at first sight,” Bill would say later. He courted May for two years then, after her graduation from Smith College, married her.
The following year, the young couple experienced tragedy as their infant son died and May was told she could not have other children. Robbed of her expected future, she involved herself in the Wild West show. By the time Pawnee Bill established his own show, May was an accomplished rider and markswoman.
Bill’s family had moved to Oklahoma Territory and in 1902, Bill purchased land from his Pawnee friend, Blue Hawk. The Lillies lived in a small log cabin on the property and began building a Tudor-style Arts and Crafts home.
The Wild West show traveled the world. Bill had expanded his repertoire in 1901 to encompass a “Far East” element. By 1906, show bills boasted “men and women of every tribe of every nation....”
Sometimes he competed with Buffalo Bill’s show; sometimes, they partnered. The organization fell apart financially in 1913 and Bill came back to Pawnee where he was involved in ranching, banking and the oil business. The Lillies adopted a son who died at the age of 9 in a tragic accident.
The couple hosted many prominent visitors at their home on the hill. Bill and May celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 1936. May died later that year; Bill died in 1942.
Today’s visitors will see the house just as it was when May and Bill lived there. All the furnishings are original.
The décor is an eclectic mix of elegance and rusticity. The dining table is set with silver from Tiffany’s. Beautiful oak parquetry floors decorate the formal rooms. Doors and woodwork are of Philippine mahogany. The home had electricity, hot and cold running water and steam heat and the real gold tile trim in one of the bathrooms came from Paris.
Century-old Navajo rugs cover the floor in the living room while a bear-skin rug is displayed in front of an unusual tile fireplace in the den. The front door is a massive, yet perfectly balanced, Dutch door with 20-pound brass hinges and double-beveled glass. In the dining room, a glass cabinet holds May’s collection of crystal. Upstairs, in her bedroom, is a silver dresser set including her snuff box. A stuffed alligator holds umbrellas in the den.
Nearby, in the museum, memorabilia from the Wild West shows is on display. May became famous for her skills and was dubbed the “Princess of the Prairie.” She was the only woman in the world able to break targets thrown into the air while she rode full speed on her Mustang. May and other female stars feature prominently in the museum.
Other ranch features include a large stock barn holding authentic and reproduction vehicles and an original billboard advertising the Wild West Show. Bison and longhorn cattle roam the ranch acres.
Although a visit to the ranch and museum is interesting anytime, the year’s biggest days are the days of the re-created Wild West Show. This year, these will be June 14, June 21 and June 28. Festivities begin with an early afternoon parade through downtown Pawnee followed by continuous entertainment at the ranch. Most people buy tickets for the barbecue dinner which precedes the show, making an entire afternoon and evening of activities.
Summer or winter, Pawnee Bill still is providing Oklahomans good entertainment.
Hours and days of operation vary, so check the Web site at www.pawneebillswildwestshow.com or call (918) 762-2513 before you go. Pawnee is about 90 miles northeast of Edmond.
