In 1886, a census estimated that the American bison population had once numbered around 15 million. By 1885, however, only 500 to 800 bison remained in the United States.
One of the people documenting this dramatic decline was William Hornaday, chief taxidermist of the United States National Museum. Educated at Oskaloosa College and Iowa State Agricultural College, Hornaday conducted a nationwide survey by consulting ranchers, hunters, army officers, and zoo keepers. Believing the species was on the verge of extinction, he traveled extensively to collect specimens that could be preserved and displayed for future generations.
The American bison, often called the buffalo, was a survivor of the last Ice Age. At its peak, the species ranged across much of North America. Bison frequently traveled through Iowa, particularly in the north-central and western parts of the state. Members of the Iowa Dragoons under the command of Stephen Kearny once described a herd of 5,000 animals near the future site of Northwood, Iowa.
As settlers moved into Iowa, they transformed the landscape. Prairies and oak savannas were cleared to make way for farmland, reducing the open spaces for bison needed to roam and graze. Severe winters in 1844 and 1860 dealt additional blows to the population of Bison. Combined with relentless hunting, these factors caused a rapid decline of Bison in Iowa . By 1860, bison herds had become a rare sight in Iowa, reduced to scattered animals that were hunted down wherever they could be found.
In 1870, the last known pair of wild bison in Iowa was spotted west of Spirit Lake. Shortly afterward, the species officially disappeared from the state.
Conservation efforts soon began to emerge. John Lacey, a congressman from Oskaloosa, helped pass the Lacey Act in 1894, also known as the Yellowstone Park Protection Act. The legislation gave the Department of the Interior greater authority to protect Yellowstone’s lands and wildlife from human destruction.
The work of Hornaday and Lacey helped establish the programs and laws that ultimately saved the American bison from disappearing entirely from the United States. Today, approximately 500,000 bison live in North America. However, fewer than 30,000 are considered genetically pure wild bison, and only about 5,000 live in unfenced, free-ranging herds.
Although the vast bison herds that once crossed Iowa are unlikely to return, visitors can still see captive herds within the state. Notable locations include the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge near Prairie City and the Broken Kettle Grasslands Preserve north of Sioux City.
