The Last Of The Scouts

Originally Aired: March 9, 1938 In Cavalcade of America #125, "The Last Of The Scouts," the episode dramatizes the legendary life of William F. Cody, better known as Buffalo Bill. The story follows young Will Cody as he brings his new bride Louise from St. Louis to the wild Kansas frontier, where their riverboat journey is interrupted by gunfire from Jesse James's gang. Despite the danger, Lou stands by her husband's vision of taming the wilderness and building a future for settlers heading west. Will explains his calling to help clear the path for wagon trains and railroads, working for a tomorrow when towns as big as St. Louis will rise from the plains. As Buffalo Bill's reputation grows through his work as a buffalo hunter for the Kansas Pacific Railroad and later as an army scout under General Sheridan, the dangers intensify. Fresh from a narrow escape from Comanche chief Satanta, an exhausted Cody barely has time to hold his baby daughter before duty calls again. Despite his wife's pleas and his own exhaustion, he faces a perilous 65-mile night ride through hostile territory carrying urgent military dispatches, embodying the courage and dedication that made him a frontier legend.