In June, 2002, a brick facade wall collapsed, revealing a heretofore unknown and historically significant image of a very early William Cody touring company called the Buffalo Bill Combination. The following report summarizes what has happened since its discovery and the plan for conservation and exhibition.
The Civic Center Development Corporation (CCDC) is a sister organization to the nonprofit Reg Lenna Civic Center (RLCC) in Jamestown, NY. CCDC was created to acquire and manage properties in the cultural district in the vicinity of and on behalf of the Civic Center. RLCC has a management contract with the Arts Council for Chautauqua County, by which the Arts Council provides staffing and administrative services, as well as office overhead to RLCC and CCDC.
In June, 2002, on a building owned by CCDC, a historic 1878 William "Buffalo Bill" Cody billboard was discovered on an exterior wall, hidden under a brick facade for 124 years. The CCDC Board took appropriate emergency conservation steps to remove and store the pieces of paper making up this billboard. During the next three months, a CCDC Project Coordinator from the Board has pursued further information in relation to this discovery and its historical significance.
When the exterior brick facade wall came loose and was about to collapse the Board of Directors of the Civic Center Development Corporation, and staff decided that the wall needed to come down in a controlled way, thereby ensuring public safety. A construction crew was hired to remove the bricks beginning on Thursday, June 6, 2002. As they did so, they discovered that the old wood sheathing behind it had a 26'x10' billboard on it advertising the William "Buffalo Bill" Cody show. A member of the crew from Fiske Construction, recognized this was something important, stopped the work, and contacted Keith Schmitt, Acting Director of the Arts Council.
The construction crew and the Arts Council staff acted quickly, since some of the pieces were already coming away from the wall and blowing away. With help from several volunteers, Keith Schmitt photographed and recorded as much information as possible. They collected and temporarily stored the pieces that were removable. After the rest of the bricks were removed, the wall was covered with tarps to protect the parts of the billboard that remained. It was uncovered briefly over two successive weekends for conservation purposes. Even slight breezes were a potential hazard that could cause damage to the fragile 124 year old paper. In fact, during the removal process, volunteers were asked to watch for retrieve any and all bits of paper that became detached as a result of the movement of air.
Many individual wood block prints form the sections of a 26'x10' billboard for "Buffalo Bill Combination" touring show called "May Cody, or Lost and Won". The show was touted as "His New and Exciting Border Drama." It announces the performance at the original Allen Opera House on March 14, 1878 -- the present site of the Reg Lenna Civic Center.
The billboard is composed of five distinct sections:
The far left section is text describing the show "May Cody". This was in the roughest condition and some of it was left on the building because its condition was too deteriorated for it to be removed.
To the right of this text is a scene made up of 6 matched wood block print sections measuring 38"x26". Four of these sections are largely intact, and much of the other two sections can be pieced together. Together the six printed sections form a scene showing Buffalo Bill on a horse waving to an admiring crowd, plus several Lakota warriors and their horses. This is being referred to as the "red mural" because the background is red, with the figures printed in black tones that appear to be lighter or darker, a visual impression created by the technique of cross hatching. Other colors may be discovered when the paper is cleaned. Much of this section of the billboard was loose when discovered behind the collapsed brick facade wall. The pieces in this portion of the billboard, which were salvaged by the construction crew and Arts Council staff as they were starting to blow away, are now in storage boxes.
Adjacent to the image of Buffalo Bill and the Lakotas another image, also in black on red background, shows scenes depicting the "Mountain Meadows Massacre", an event generally acknowledged by historians to have involved an attack by Mormons, in concert with native Americans, on a wagon train traveling through Utah. The massacre was a relatively "current event" at the time of the May Cody show, although it was fictionalized for dramatic effect.
Next in line, to the right of the red mural, is an 8' x 3.5' image of John Nelson, at the bottom of which is text with his Lakota-given name "ChaShaShaOPogeo." This is the most dramatic part of the billboard as it is essentially intact and printed in multiple colors. Because of this, it has become the focus of the first stage of conservation.
To the right of John Nelson's image there is another section of text, much of it readable, which describes and summarizes the May Cody show in "headline" form (not unlike what one would expect to see in a newspaper from the 19th century).
The entire Nelson poster and the adjoining text section to its right ( a repeat of the text section on the left hand side of the billboard) has been professionally stabilized by affixing Japanese tissue to the image side with methyl cellulose gel, which will stay there (the process is totally reversible) until further conservation is done. These pieces, too, are in storage boxes.
Across the top of the billboard, running its entire length, 14" tall (approx.) letters announce the BUFFALO BILL COMBINATION.
Across the bottom of the billboard are smaller pieces of paper on which is repetitively printed Buffalo Bill Combination, Allen Opera House! March 14, 1878.
Pat Anzideo, Secretary of the Reg Lenna Civic Center Board and now Buffalo Bill Project Coordinator, contacted a number of accredited paper conservators. Laura Schell, a graduate of Buffalo State's Conservation Program and a free-lance conservator, was hired. The Chautauqua Region Community Foundation assisted in paying the fee for the emergency work done by Mrs. Schell and a team of volunteers assisted in the work, under her direction.
The first step in the conservation process was to get the paper off the wall. During two visits to the site of the discovery, Mrs. Schell tested the paper, adhered Japanese tissue to the paper with methyl cellulose gel, and then steamed those parts of the billboard to set the gel to the paper and soften the glue holding the paper to the wooden wall sheathing. It came off in sections as the paper had been torn over the years into approximately 10" strips owing to the process of shrinkage of the wood planks to which it was glued.
Mrs. Schell provided full condition reports in writing following her initial visit on June 15 and the second visit on June 22, with recommendations about conservation. These condition reports have been an important element in further consulting with historians, curators and appraisers.
Mrs. Schell describes the billboard as wood block prints, done in a process involving several colors, including red, black, yellow, and green. "More colors may be discovered following cleaning of the poster," she said. "The material in the poster is brittle and prone to breakage," she went on. "The state of degradation is not unexpected after some 100+ years, especially when considering that the poster was formed as ephemera and not originally intended for longevity. Fortunately, the paper was not exposed to the elements for most of its history."
In September, 2002, Mrs. Schell completed conservation of a fragment. The 10 1/2" x 50 1/2" fragment includes one of the repetitive sections that say "Buffalo Bill Combination Allen Opera House! March 14" In addition, it has a small piece of the red mural attached. She was commissioned to conserve this piece so that she could find out for certain how the paper behaves during the conservation process and thereby give us an accurate quote on conserving the rest of the billboard. Also by having one completed fragment, the Civic Center Development Center board is able to see "before and after" examples on which to base a more informed decision about a conservation program. In her accompanying technical report, Mrs. Schell noted, "This initial demonstration piece has helped us gain an understanding of the overall paper's fragility and other treatment options. Although the red section of the fragment was quite strong and flexible throughout treatment, the majority of the fragment -- primarily the Allen Opera House portion -- was incredibly delicate and weak." Conservation of this piece revealed that the "Allen Opera House" portion had been printed on thinner/lighter weight paper stock then the other parts of the billboard. But, even this piece held up through the conservation process. This work was made possible through a donation from Lamar Outdoor Advertising.
Among the sources contacted for information was a paper conservator for the Smithsonian Institution. She concurred that Mrs. Schell is taking all the correct steps. She reviewed the description of the proposed conservation steps and found them appropriate and reasonably priced.
Prior to the billboard's removal, the entire mural was thoroughly documented in photography and video by Kurt Moore, Keith Schmitt, and Michael Flaxman from the Arts Council Board. After being removed from the wall, the pieces of the poster were temporarily stored in boxes specially constructed by Mr. Flaxman from materials donated by Jamestown Container Corp.
The boxes, though not archival quality, are adequate for a while, and are in the archive section of the Roger Tory Peterson Institute, under the same strict security for the Peterson materials.
Even before the billboard was removed, Karen Livsey, from the Fenton Historical Society, did some research and found that the performance being advertised was of a 6th anniversary tour of "The Buffalo Bill Combination", an early theater troupe that was organized by and starred William "Buffalo Bill" Cody. Ms. Livsey located copies of the newspaper advertisements in advance of the show titled "May Cody" as well as reviews of the local production.
The text on the billboard describes this drama as "depicting the true nature of life among the Mormons". It goes on to mention the Mountain Meadow Massacre, an incident that occurred in September, 1857, during the Mormons&Mac226; early settlement in Utah. It is an interesting coincidence that this billboard was found at this time because the Mountain Meadow Massacre has been in the news in the past few years, since a monument has been erected at the site and extensive research has been done recently concerning this incident. This border drama played in Jamestown the year following the execution of John Lee, who had been convicted in relation to the Mountain Meadow Massacre.
The performance advertised in this billboard was presented in 1878 in the Allen Opera House, which at that time, according to Ms. Livsey's research, was located where the present Reg Lenna Civic Center is today. That original Allen Opera House burned down and was later rebuilt at a different location on Second Street, the site of today's Lucille Ball Little Theater.
William Cody's show business career was launched in 1872 by famed dime novelist, Ned Buntline. The following year Buffalo Bill began his own theater troupe, The Buffalo Bill Combination, which toured the country for ten years, until 1883, when he began the now-better-known Wild West Show. This era has been documented in a recent book titled "Buffalo Bill, Actor: A chronicle of Cody's Theatrical Career" written by Sandra Sagala of Erie, Pennsylvania. Buffalo Bill was one of the earliest users of multi-sheet billboard advertisements, and did much to popularize their use.
C. Wesley Cowan, from Cowan's Historic Americana Auctions, and a contributor to PBS's Antiques Roadshow, examined the pieces of the billboard now in storage and verified that they are "among the earliest graphic representations of Buffalo Bill known to exist." After viewing the Buffalo Bill material and touring the restored Reg Lenna Civic Center as a possible location for installation of the restored billboard, he said, "You folks are doing all the right stuff!" Mr. Cowan estimated that the value of the piece would approximately equal the cost of restoration.
In addition to those cited above, the Project Director has had conversations about this discovery with several collectors of Buffalo Bill memorabilia. Conservation advice was received from the New York State Historical Association, the Buffalo State Arts Conservation paper conservation faculty, and 3 certified conservators. Assistance was also provided by museums, such as the Buffalo Bill Historical Center (Cody, Wyoming) and the Ringling Museum of Art (Sarasota, Florida). Printed sources have
been provided through the Prendergast Library, interlibrary loan services, Fenton Historical Center, and private collectors.
Juti Winchester, Curator of the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, has indicated that they have nothing like this in their extensive collection. The 1878 billboard is one of the earliest, rarest, and largest Buffalo Bill items known. She has been receiving copies of news articles and phone calls from all over this country about our Buffalo Bill discovery. She's sensing a lot of excitement about the find. She verified that the restoration costs may approximately equal the financial value of the restored piece.
Dr. Paul Fees, historian and former curator of the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, WY., verified that this billboard is from very early in Cody's theatrical career. According to Dr. Fees, the image of John Nelson is rare as Mr. Nelson is usually referred to only in text. The name across the bottom of the large poster is "ChaShaShaOPogeo", the Lakota name of John Nelson, who joined the Buffalo Bill shows about the time of this appearance in Jamestown. Dr. Fees referred to John Nelson as "a fascinating historical character." He also confirmed that Buffalo Bill prints from the 1870's in general are very rare.
A press conference, at which a press release and specially prepared video tape detailing the work to date was distributed, was attended by stringers representing a number of media outlets and was picked up by the AP newswire and appeared all over the United States. The Jamestown discovery was featured on CNN on 7/4/02. Keith Schmitt, Acting Director, did a CBC interview on 7/9/ 02.
In September, 2002, the Board approved a plan for seeking funds to conserve the billboard as fully as possible, in a four-phase program. The goal is to exhibit this historic artifact for the public to view in the inner lobby of the Reg Lenna Civic Center, the site of the original Allen Opera House where the show that is advertised on the billboard played. In addition, restoration of the images will allow reproductions to be made that can safely travel thereby allowing the billboard to be shared more widely.
We speculate that because the crew that hung these billboards 124 years ago could not be certain how much open space they'd find in a particular locale, the billboard was comprised of multiple "stand-alone" sections. If they came across a small wall they might hang only one or two sections. In the case of the billboard we discovered they seem to have found a bonanza of space and were able to hang all four sections plus a repeat of the the main text section, placing one at each end of the billboard. Because we now have this billboard as discreet images enables us to conserve it in four phases. The four phases are:
1. Conservation of the image of John Nelson, known as ChaShaShaOPogeo
This 8'x3.5' image was almost entirely intact on the building's wood sheathing when the bricks collapsed and revealed the billboard. The original poster had been glued to the wood. Over the years, as the wooden planks shrank, the paper ripped into 10" high strips (on average). This image of Nelson is the most colorful element in the billboard. The conservator removed it from the wall, applying Japanese stabilizing tissue and affixing it to the face of the antique paper with methyl cellulose gel. After the pieces were steamed to set the gel and soften the glue bonding the pieces to the wall, a volunteer "mapped" the location of each piece as it was being removed, making reconstruction easier in the future. The strips that comprise the billboard are now in archival storage.
Further conservation will involve washing each strip of paper to remove the tissue, methyl cellulose gel, and as much of the grit and dust as possible that has accumulated on the paper over the years. Then each piece will be affixed to stabilizing fabric and assembled so that, as much as possible, it will approximate its original condition. The cost to restore this element is confirmed at $10,425. In addition there will be the costs of framing the finished piece under ultraviolet conservation glass to prevent any fading of the colors, plus installation and lighting. The total cost of this phase of the project is anticipated to be $15,000.
2. Conservation of the portion of the billboard that includes the image of Buffalo Bill and his admiring crowds
This section is made up of 6-8 block prints, each measuring 38"x26". The size is known exactly because two of the pieces we have are whole and complete to the four edges. Most of the pieces comprising this section were not still glued to the wall when the bricks collapsed. The pieces were collected and laid flat until they could be placed in boxes and moved to archival storage. Based on our inspection of the pieces, we anticipate that this section of the billboard will be approximately 8 ft. high and 6.5 ft.
wide. The conservation process will differ from that of the John Nelson poster in that there is not at this time any stabilizing tissue on the face of the paper as it was almost off the wall when discovered. This will save some time in the process. However, because the pieces came off in a random way, the work of re-assembling them into a coherent whole will take longer -- like doing a jig-saw puzzle for which there is no picture to go by. In order to assist with this process, a first step would be that of photographing all of the pieces carefully and in such as way that there is no "keystoning" effect. This will help immeasurably in the real reassembly process as we will be able to "virtually" or digitally reassemble the puzzle first. A preliminary estimate of this phase of the project is $30,000, including conservation, photography, framing, and installation.
3. Conservation of the portion of the billboard that includes "scenes from the show"
In some ways this portion is a continuation of phase two, although as far as can be determined from the fragments, the prints that comprise this section are "stand alone" scenes that do not appear to integrate with the "Buffalo Bill and admiring crowds" images. A complication may be that all of the block prints from Phase 2 and Phase 3 are in black printing on red background and could easily be confused. The photography done in Phase 2 will be crucial to separating which fragments are part of Phase 2 images and which are part of Phase 3 images. We anticipate that the finished Phase 3 portion of the billboard will be 8'x3.5' and will cost about $15,000, including conservation, framing, and installation.
4. Conservation of the text portions of the billboard, including description of the show, the top banner BUFFALO BILL COMBINATION plus Allen Opera House promotional text across the bottom
These pieces will have to be examined and measured by the conservator. Then we will have to compare them with the photos taken while the fragments were still on the wall in order to know the amount of conservation work to be done. Based on the early photographs taken when the billboard was still on the wall and on the condition of the text fragments, our estimates are that this phase will be about $20,000.
The total costs cited for each phase are based on preliminary but reliable estimates. We have one firm quote as noted above and, to the extent possible, we are collecting firm quotes on the rest of the work in order to have reliable itemized budgets for each phase.
The CCDC Board hopes that each of the phases of this conservation project will be sponsored by a corporation, foundation, group, or individuals that have an interest in Buffalo Bill or in the historic nature and significance of the images. For each phase, there will be national publicity, building on the interest and attention we have already experienced, and an "unveiling" ceremony and program, with the sponsor(s) specially honored and recognized.
With this project description is included a collection of photos illustrating the removal of the billboard from the wall and some of the fragments.
Patricia Anzideo, Project Coordinator
Secretary, RLCC and CCDC
716-484-0551 flaxman@netsync.net
Keith Schmitt, Acting Director,
Arts Council for Chautauqua County
716-664-2465 ext. 1 keith@artscouncil.com
Sue Jones, President
Reg Lenna Civic Center and
Civic Center Development Corporation
716-661-1666 gljod@netsync.net