BLAKESBURG — When Humanities Iowa asked Roy Behrens if he would be part of its Speakers Bureau, Behrens knew that he wanted his programs to be about Iowa.
“I’m a native Iowan,” Behrens told an audience at Blakesburg Christian Church.
Behrens’ subjects for Humanities Iowa are Grant Wood, Frank Lloyd Wright and Buffalo Bill. He brought his Buffalo Bill presentation to Blakesburg Sunday.
“He actually has a lot of descendants still in the state,” Behrens said as he set up for the presentation. Wherever Behren’s presents the program, he finds people who say they are related to the star of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West, “or someone in the family knew him.”
Others, like Behrens, remember hearing about the Buffalo Bill show from people who saw it.
“My father grew up in northeast Iowa,” said Behrens. “My father actually went to the Wild West show.” Behrens grew up hearing tales about the show and became fascinated with it.
“[I] also want to make people aware of what happened to Native Americans in this country,” Behrens said. Buffalo Bill killed natives, Behrens said, but he was also one of the first to support them.
William F. Cody was born in 1846 in Le Claire in the Iowa Territory. He was an American scout and bison hunter. He served the Union in the American Civil War and was a civilian scout for the U.S. Army during the Indian Wars.
Cody founded Buffalo Bill’s Wild West in 1883. The show toured the U.S., Great Britain and continental Europe.
Cody died in 1917.
Behren’s lecture is an overview of Cody’s life, both tragic and heroic, says Humanities Iowa, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities in Washington, D.C. “It was tragic because of the role that he played in the near extinction of the American Bison … and, even more deplorable, in the subjugation of Native Americans.
“If his life was heroic, it was because of his later support of the rights of Native Americans, his friendship with many of them (most notably with Sitting Bull), and his link with colorful characters like Annie Oakley and Wild Bill Hickok.”
Behrens is professor of art and distinguished scholar at the University of Northern Iowa. He has taught graphic design and design history for nearly 45 years at American colleges and universities, Humanities Iowa says.
The professor has been featured on NOVA, National Public Radio and the BBC and has written many books and magazine articles.
Blakesburg Historical Preservation Society offers about four programs a year to the community, said Patty Rowland, BHPS president. One or two are usually from Humanities Iowa.
BHPS provides a list of programs offered by Humanities Iowa at the museum a couple of months ahead of time. Visitors to the museum can vote for the program they would like to hear.
“We let the public choose,” Rowland said.
“Blakesburg is such a small community. There aren’t a lot of cultural events,” Rowland said. Its programs can bring in 20 people or more than 100 depending on the topic, the weather and conflicts with other events.
Residents arrived early to find a seat for Sunday’s lecture about Buffalo Bill, possibly because the last program hosted by BHPS was so well attended despite a snowstorm, Rowland said.
Reporter Winona Whitaker can be contacted at wwhitaker@ottumwacourier.com and followed on Twitter @courierwinona.
