# Wild Bill Hickok — The Life of Buffalo Bill character guide

> Wild Bill Hickok in The Life of Buffalo Bill by William F. Cody.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Wild Bill, Billy, Bill, the bogus Wild Bill

**First appearance:** 0003-i-childhood

## Snapshot

A celebrated frontier lawman and scout whose name carries enough weight that impostors trade on it, and whose friendship with Cody runs alongside a quiet rivalry.

## Who they are

Hickok belongs to the same small circle of noted plainsmen Cody keeps crossing paths with, men whose reputations are currency on the frontier. The passages hint at a peculiar tension: his fame is so potent that a 'bogus Wild Bill' can borrow it, raising the question of what remains authentic when a name outruns its owner. For the early-middle arc, he is the mirror Cody measures himself against — another self-made legend, and a reminder that the West rewards men who can back their reputations with action.

## In the story

### [The Life of Buffalo Bill](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/the-life-of-buffalo-bill)

A notable figure who appears in Cody's early adventures.

### [In Business](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/v-in-business)

Defends Cody from a bullying teamster, becoming his protector and intimate friend. Described in detail through General Custer's portrait.

### [Hard Times](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/vi-hard-times)

Cody's close friend; visits Cody's family after the return from Fort Bridger and is warmly received.

### [Adventures on the Overland Road](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/viii-adventures-on-the-overland-road)

Elected captain of the stock-recovery party; devises the plan to surprise the Indian camp.

### [X: Questionable Proceedings](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/x-questionable-proceedings)

Cody's friend and hero; kills Dave Tutt in a duel and single-handedly defeats the Jake McCandless gang.

### [A Soldier](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/xi-a-soldier)

Meets Cody while both are disguised as Confederates; gives Cody letters for General McNiel and expresses grief over Cody's mother's death.

### [A Tough Time](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/xix-a-tough-time)

Carries dispatches to Camp Supply with other scouts; later involved in a fight with Mexican scouts and is questioned by General Carr alongside Cody.

### [Starring](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/chapters/xxix-starring)

Recruited for the stage but struggles with acting; plays pranks on supers and confronts roughs in Titusville; later killed in Deadwood.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/characters/wild_bill
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_life_of_buffalo_bill_se/characters