Frontier Village

Jamestown’s “claim to fame” is “The World’s Largest Buffalo”, a cement sculpture that stands 26’ tall, 46’ long and weighs 60 ton. The statue, built in 1959, was the vision of Harold Newman, the owner and founder of Newman Signs in Jamestown. As the years passed, a number of old buildings were moved in and eventually an old Frontier Town culminated, now known as the Frontier Village. Harold Newman’s vision, “to create something so, big and magnificent, that passersby would have to stop in the city”, was definitely realized. Today, the Frontier Village, in which the “World’s Largest Buffalo” and the National Buffalo Museum are located, attracts over 100,000 people each year.

The Frontier Village complex features a post office, a trading post which houses a souvenir shop, a saloon, a fire department, barber shop, jail, sheriffs office, Louis L’Amour writers shack, and much more. The states oldest grocery store was moved to the complex from Eldridge, a small town 15 miles west of Jamestown. The store was built in 1878 and now features a gift shop and an old fashioned soda fountain during the summer months.

During the summer months the Frontier Village seems to come alive. All of the buildings are open to the public, stagecoach and pony rides are available, and many other activities occur during the Memorial Day to Labor Day open season.