Unique 1885 Signed Sitting Bull Wild West Show Contract to Auction

An 1885 contract signed by Sitting Bull for his appearance in Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show will go under the hammer at RR Auction later this month.

Dated June 6, 1885, the agreement with the show's general manager John M. Burke outlines Sitting Bull’s pay for the tour ($50 a week) and grants him the “sole right to sell his own Photographs and Autographs” during the show. According to the catalog for The Western Americana auction of Jochen Zeitz, no other signed contract by Sitting Bull is known to exist.

Sitting Bull joined Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show in 1885, partly to observe American society and advocate for his people, becoming one of the show’s most recognizable attractions during a four-month tour across the Northeast and Canada.

The document is part of The Western Americana auction of Jochen Zeitz on May 21, a dedicated single-owner sale featuring approximately 170 artifacts assembled over several decades. Lots include artifacts associated with figures such as George Armstrong Custer, Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hickok, and Davy Crockett.

A portion of proceeds from the sale will support conservation initiatives connected to the ZEITZ Foundation in Kenya, including wildlife protection, habitat restoration, education, and community-based conservation programs.

“Jochen has approached collecting with the same long-term perspective that defines his conservation work,” said Bobby Livingston, executive vice president of RR Auction. “The collection brings together a wide range of material that speaks to the complexity and enduring fascination of the American West.”