La Salle County is throwing Wild Bill Hickok one of his largest celebrations 150 years after his death.

Wild Bill Days, a family-friendly celebration of La Salle County’s native son, commemorates the life of James Butler Hickok, a folk hero of the American frontier during the mid-19th century.

“This is a great way to learn about your local history,” Executive Director of the La Salle County Historical Society Amanda Carter said. “It’s a great, free family event for your kids to not only have a good time, but also learn something.”

The celebration is taking place in three different towns over the weekend, with trolleys available to take people to each event.

In Utica, Buffalo Bill’s Best of the Wild West Show will start at 1:30 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.

The show is an 80-minute live arena performance behind Jamie’s Outpost, located at 602 Clark St., that will showcase horse acts, rolling stock and trick shooters.

In addition to the show, visitors can turn the clock back with period merchandise, Hickok’s personal and family artifact viewing, stagecoach rides and campsite experiences.

“We keep everything free so that everybody can come in, enjoy and learn about our rich history here in La Salle County and a big part of that history is Wild Bill Hickok,” Carter said. “So, we’re always glad to share it every year.”

Hickok was born in what is now Troy Grove on May 27, 1837, and worked along the I & M Canal as a youth until heading to the western territories on the American frontier in 1855.

Hickok saw and participated in some of the most famous events in American history at that time, picking up a reputation as an anti-slavery militia scout and spy for the Union army during the Civil War, as well as being a showman, gambler and gunfighter who played a key role in several shootouts until his luck ran out on Aug. 2, 1876.

In Hickok’s hometown of Homer, now Troy Grove, the Old West Regulators will put on a 12-scene re-enactment performance of the “Life and Times of James Butler Hickok” at 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at Troy Grove Park, located at 207 Peru St.

Part of that time later in the brief life of Wild Bill was a return to La Salle County to recover from a lance injury in his leg and visit his mother, during which time he was photographed. That photograph was used to inspire a life-size statue of the folk hero in Mendota’s Veterans Park.

In Mendota, Walt Willey will put on four performances of “The End of the Trail”, a one-man show focused on Hickok’s final days and ultimate death at the end of Jack McCall’s gun while holding “dead man’s hand” in a poker game at the No. 10 saloon in Deadwood, South Dakota.

The performances start at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 30, and Sunday, May 31, outside the Hume-Carnegie Museum at Veterans Park in Mendota, located at 901 Washington St.

There will be merchandise, food and other activities for visitors at the Mendota site, including free admission to the Union Depot Railroad Museum over the weekend.

Mendota has participated in Wild Bill Days before, but the city made sure to make the 150th anniversary of Hickok’s death an inviting celebration to residents, making improvements to Veterans Park earlier this month.

“I think this really shows that people care about their local history, and that they recognize the importance of this figure,” Executive Director of the Mendota Museum and Historical Society Alex Revzan said. “Here in La Salle County, we want to share that history with as many people as possible.”

Four trolley rides will be available in each city every 90 minutes starting at 10 a.m. in Utica, followed by 10:30 a.m. in Troy Grove and 11 a.m. in Mendota.

The Wild Bill Days celebration dates back to 2010 in Troy Grove, but ended in 2016 due to volunteer struggles.

As home base for the La Salle County Historical Society, Utica picked up the baton in 2019 and has been joined by Mendota some years, although Utica has done the celebration annually since taking up the cause.

With 2026 being the first year of a three-city event for Wild Bill Days, Carter hopes to inspire today’s and future generations to keep the area’s history alive.

“The more we can teach our younger generations about our local history, we’ll have a better rate of people getting more involved as they get older and carrying on this torch and preserving La Salle County’s rich history,” she said.