Oh, Give Me a Home: The Bison Museum
By Kanksha Mehta
Photography provided by the Bison Museum
There’s a place for Wild West legends. Buffalo Bill, Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Jessie James, Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, Sitting Bull, and Daniel Boone have all, so to speak, carved out a place for themselves in the Bison Museum in North Scottsdale.
Dee Flagg’s impressive collection of eight life-sized wood-carved historical figures brings together these Western notables and is one of the crown jewels of the new museum. Flagg, who enjoyed a 65-year career carving incredible figures from wood by hand—never by machine—is considered the premier Old West woodcarver of his era. Neither the artist nor his estate has ever allowed reproductions of his original works, so the presence of this eight-piece collection in the Bison Museum is invaluable.
The museum also houses the Flagg family’s personal collection, recovered from auction. In all, the museum and its collection provide not only an interesting visit for Western history buffs, but also an outstanding educational resource for teachers and children.
Along with Flagg’s famous figures, valuable pieces like the collection of Buffalo Bill Cody’s original Sharps hunting rifles make Scottsdale live up to its reputation as “the West’s most Western town.”
Gary Martinson, owner of the Bison Museum and president of Bison Homes, created this unique venue for two reasons: to encourage a better understanding of our Western heritage and the vital role the bison has played in it; and to give Bison Homes the opportunity to present its mountain communities in an interesting way.
According to Martinson, the museum successfully brings together three interrelated components of our nation’s history: the American Bison, the Native Americans, and the Old West. The sheer volume of bison-related items and artifacts here is unmatched. A singing buffalo family, polished rocks, a saddled bison ride, a gift shop, paintings, and sculptures are just some of the amenities and points of interest that await both adults and children at The Bison Museum. The All Things Bison section features belt buckles, stamps, patches, toys, plates, spoons, knives, etched glass, and just about everything else that either has a bison image on it or is in the shape of a bison.
Other items of interest include Native American artifacts and an assortment of bronzes, paintings and prints by Remington, Russell, Catlin, Clymer, Damrow and others. All together, the Bison Museum houses what is described as the best Western collection in the United States. The museum is also equipped with spacious meeting facilities with state-of-the-art audio/visual capabilities and beautifully decorated party areas. And, if you’ve ever wanted to party with Billy the Kid, Martinson can accommodate that as well.
“We are currently building out the warehouse section of our building to create the ultimate party hosting facility, complete with a Western Town front, soundstage, and sit-down dining for at least 200,” Martinson says. The facility should be ready and functioning by January, and Martinson plans to hold the major events held during the winter months in the facility.
Making Arizona history and Western heritage front-page items is a goal for Martinson as his museum continues to grow in the North Valley. He is working hard to ensure that this original facility remains one of the finest of its kind in Arizona, and perhaps in the United States.