The ranch was established in 1878 with an initial purchase of 160 acres south of the Union Pacific tracks by William (Buffalo Bill) Cody.

The house and outbuildings can be toured, including a museum documenting Cody's life from a Pony Express rider to his Wild West shows.

In 1877 Cody contacted Major Frank North, the leader of the Pawnee Scouts, who was living in Sidney, Nebraska.

[4] During the time of owning the Cody-North Ranch, in 1878, Cody began buying land surrounding North Platte.

The first purchase of land was 160 acres for $750, south of the Union Pacific tracks that run through North Platte.

Goodman found issues of water absorption and planted many cottonwoods and box-elder around the property, able to withstand the conditions.

[3] When the trees grew, the southern portion of the ranch turned into a wooded park with deer, several young buffaloes, and a large lake.

[2] Cody had the words “Scout’s Rest Ranch” painted on the roof of the large barn, so that it could be read from the Union Pacific tracks a mile away.

[6] A Lincoln County Historical Society was organized to help raise money for the purchase of Buffalo Bill Cody's house.

The structures on the park include the Second Empire style mansion built in 1886 for the Goodmans, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

During flooding on the Platte River in the summer of 2011, the site was closed, exhibits moved and berms were built around the buildings.