Annie Oakley

Background

Annie Oakley was born in a Drake Country, Ohio, log cabin on Aug. 13, 1860, the sixth of eight children.

Career

After her father died in a blizzard, she began shooting rabbits and quail to provide the family income. Then she went to town, won a shooting match against a vaudeville star named Frank E. Butler, and earned more by shooting glass balls and playing cards at 30 paces.

She married Butler, and he became her manager. Buffalo Bill hired them for his Wild West Show in 1885. Helped by publicists like Nate Salsbury and her own incredible shooting eye, Oakley remained a star for 17 years, surmounting even a train wreck in 1901 that partially paralyzed her for a time.

Let no one doubt that Oakley could do what she claimed. Thousands of people saw Annie slice a playing card with the thin edge toward her by shooting at 30 paces. Kaiser Wilhelm II had her shoot a cigarette out of his lips. She was death to moving glass balls; one day, by official count, she shot 4, 772 out of 5, 000.

Dressed in western costume and beating many a man in what was traditionally a masculine world, she intrigued young and old alike. (No wonder that Irving Berlin made her the subject of his Broadway musical Annie Get Your Gun, which played throughout the 1950s. )

She was never involved in the kind of scandal that plagued Buffalo Bill, and at least 18 orphan girls were educated through her generosity.

When Annie Oakley died on November 3, 1926, there was wide mourning and many tributes. By then, any punched complimentary ticket—which looked as if it had holes shot through it—was called an "Annie Oakley. "

Achievements

• Annie Oakley was an American sharpshooter and is considered America's first female superstar. Even after becoming one of the biggest stars in her field, she remembered her early days of poverty and helped orphans by donating to various charities.
  
  Annie Oakley was the best attraction of 'Buffalo Bill's Wild West' show and its top earning act. She could perform stunts including shooting a cigarette held in her husband's lips, shooting objects looking through a mirror, splitting cards on their edges, etc.
  
  She became America's first female star and was a major influence behind the 'cowgirl' image. She proved that if given equal opportunities, women can achieve as much as men. She has been inducted into the 'National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame', the 'National Women's Hall of Fame' and the 'Ohio Women's Hall of Fame', among others.

Religion

A fundamentalist in religion, Oakley read the Bible throughout her life.

Views

She considered it empowering for young women to be able to use a gun, and took initiative to teach over 15, 000 women to shoot. A supporter of women's education and independence, she thought women should be allowed to serve in the war.

Quotations: "Aim for the high mark and you will hit it. No, not the first time, not the second time and maybe not the third. But keep on aiming and keep on shooting for only practice will make you perfect. Finally you'll hit the bull's-eye of success. "

"I ain't afraid to love a man. I ain't afraid to shoot him either. "

"Any woman who does not thoroughly enjoy tramping across the country on a clear frosty morning with a good gun and a pair of dogs does not know how to enjoy life. "

"I would like to see every woman know how to handle guns as naturally as they know how to handle babies. "

"Even in the best and most peacefully civilized countries many occasions arise when a woman versed inthe knowledge and use of firarms may find that imformation and skill of great importance. "

"God intended women to be outside as well as men, and they do not know what they are missing when they stay cooped up in the house. "

"I ain't afraid to love a man . .. "

"Aim at a high mark and you will hit it. "

"For me, sitting still is harder than any kind of work. "

"My mother…was perfectly horrified when I began shooting and tried to keep me in school, but I would run away and go quail shooting in the woods or trim my dresses with wreaths of wildflowers. "

Personality

Oakley charmed everyone with her simplicity and modesty, including Queen Victoria. She always was dressed in western costume.

Connections

She married Frank E. Butler in 1876.

Annie Oakley and Butler remained married for fifty years, till her death on November 3, 1926, in Greenville, Ohio. Reportedly, her husband, Butler, was so depressed by her death that he starved himself to death 18 days after her death.

Father:

Jacob Mosey

(1799–1866)

Mother:

Susan Wise Mosey

(1830–1908)

Spouse:

Francis E. Butler

(January 30, 1847 – November 21, 1926)

References

• Annie Oakley: Wild West Sharpshooter (Primary sources of famous people in American History)
• Who Was Annie Oakley?
• Annie Oakley: The Complete TV Series
• The Life and Legacy of Annie Oakley (The Oklahoma Western Biographies)
• Missie: The Life and Times of Annie Oakley
• DK Biography: Annie Oakley
• American Experience - Annie Oakley