Wilmette Library Remembers Western Star Who Brought Attention to
Native American Culture
Wilmette, IL (April 10, 2025)—Cowboy. Soldier. Movie Star. Colonel Tim McCoy (1891-1978) was all these things and more. To an earlier generation of moviegoers, McCoy was best known as the star of numerous B-Westerns throughout the 1930s and 1940s. But to the Arapaho tribe of Wyoming, McCoy was always “High Eagle”—the name he was given in their community. An expert in “hand talk,” McCoy demonstrated his expertise on tribal communication both on film and television. Decades before Dances With Wolves (1990), McCoy’s film, End of the Trail (1932), reflected a social consciousness and a perspective that acknowledged the white man’s injustices towards Native Americans.
Tim McCoy has been called the last link between the Old West and the new—a storyteller who spoke with authority and first-hand knowledge. As a cowboy and rancher, he knew the West and had met several of its more colorful characters, including his mentor, William “Buffalo Bill” Cody. McCoy carried on Cody’s tradition of the “Wild West” show by forming his own, which opened in Chicago in 1938. Throughout his life, McCoy maintained strong ties to the West—but none were more lasting than those with the Arapaho, who accepted him as one of their own.
“Tim McCoy was one of the top cowboy stars of his era,” program host Matthew Hoffman explains. “But he had other interests that motivated him beyond just being a movie star. His strongest connection wasn’t to Hollywood, but to the native tribes of Wyoming. Throughout his life, he brought a cultural awareness to a marginalized group. It was through Tim McCoy that I became interested in Plains Indian Sign Language. And if he can do that for me, decades after his passing, he can influence others as well.”
This examination of Tim McCoy’s life and career, “Col. Tim McCoy’s Real Wild West,” will be presented at Wilmette Public Library on McCoy’s birthday, April 10. The multi-media presentation will feature photos, film clips, and stories told in McCoy’s own words. Tim McCoy memorabilia will also be on display.
This program is free to the public. No registration required. Seating is limited to 90 in the lower level Auditorium. Event begins at 7 pm.
Matthew C. Hoffman is a Tim McCoy researcher and host for the popular Pickwick Theatre Classic Film Series in Park Ridge, IL.
