Born in Le Clair, Iowa, in 1846, William Cody moved to Kansas at an early age and rode briefly for the Pony Express in 1860. Following a short stint in the army, Cody, who rose to fame as the subject of a series of dime novels by Ned Buntline, earned the nickname "Buffalo Bill" when he supplied buffalo meat to workers on the Kansas Pacific Railroad. In 1883, Cody organized Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, which staged Indian fights, roundups, stagecoach robberies, and buffalo hunts. The show toured Europe and the United States until 1913.