JAMESTOWN, N.D. - White Cloud, the rare albino American bison that attracted millions of visitors to Jamestown, has died.
The North Dakota icon that lived in the rolling hills near the National Buffalo Museum died of old age Monday. She was 19.
White Cloud was a fixture in the museum’s pasture from 1997 until her return to the ranch where she was born. After spending almost 20 years in Jamestown, she was returned in late May to the Shirek Buffalo Farm near Michigan, N.D., a city of about 300 residents 60 miles west of Grand Forks.
During White Cloud’s time in the museum herd, she was visited by an estimated 3 million people.
White bison are rare and considered sacred to indigenous peoples of North America, National Buffalo Museum Director Ilana Xinos wrote in a news release announcing White Cloud's death.
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Future plans include a full body mount for display at the museum.
April Baumgarten of the Grand Forks Herald contributed to this story.
