Who believes when someone says that women are not meant for handling guns? At least not the American sharpshooter Annie Oakley, the first female superstar in what had been a profession dominated by males. Her marksmanship helped her in escaping her distraught living conditions on Ohio. Having started shooting for supporting her family, she went on to star in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show in 1885, marking a career that would make her a historic figure for women around the world who want to beak glass ceilings.

Oakley was a key influence in creation of the image of the American cowgirl, providing substantial evidence that women are as capable as men.

The Early Life of Annie Oakley: What inspired her to take up shooting as a career?

Oakley was born in 1860 as Phoebe Ann Moses in Darke County, a rural county along the borders of Ohio. After the death of her father due to pneumonia, she was forced to work for a family whom she called “the wolves” due to the ill treatment they meted out to her. However, Oakley ran away from them and started supporting her family by shooting game in the nearby woods and selling it in the local market. Her shooting helped ends meet for her family, while also eventually allowing her mother to pay off $200 mortgage on her family home.

As was well-known around the town about Oakley’s talent with marksmanship, a Cincinnati hotelkeeper arranged a shooting contest between the 15-year-old county girl and a traveling professional sharpshooter named Frank Butler Thanksgiving Day in 1875. Interestingly, Butler was astonished on seeing his opponent and reportedly laughed her off. However, Oakley won the competition having hit all 25 targets as opposed to Butler’s score of 24. Butler fell in love with this girl and they married the following summer to remain wedded for 50 years till their deaths.

Oakley replaced the partner of Butler who fell ill in 1882, marking her debut as marksmanship performer on stage. She instantly won everyone’s hearts and won accolades for her sure skills. It was then she adopted the name ‘Annie Oakley’: Annie was what her sisters called her and Oakley after the town of “Oakley”. Henceforth, Butler started managing the shows and Oakley performed solo under the spotlight. In 1884 in St. Paul, Minnesota, she grabbed the attention of legendary Native American warrior Sitting Bull, who adopted her as his daughter and named her “Watanya Cicilla,” or “Little Sure Shot”. Later in 1885, Oakley joined the Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West and performed in the show for most of the next 17 years. Oakley was a dazzling performer and stunned the audience with her shotgun abilities, splitting cards on their edges, snuffing candles, and shooting the corks off bottles.

The Later Life of Oakley: Her Achievements and Stardom

The major turning point of Oakley’s career was when she performed in London in 1887 with Buffalo Bill Cody’s show at the American Exposition. Queen Victoria then called her a “very clever little girl”. In 1889, she started with a three-year tour of Europe that began with the Paris Exposition. It was a very successful tour for her as by the time it ended, Oakley had established herself as America’s first female shooting superstar. However, it was a well-known fact that Oakley was never extravagant and remained down-to-earth even after earning more than any other performer. She and Butler gave money to orphan charities, and helped support her mother and his daughters. Oakley with her skills hit 483 of 500, 943 of 1,000, and 4,772 of 5,000 targets on several occasions, doing brilliantly on the shooting circuit.

However, in late 1901, she and her husband met with a train accident. Within a year, she appeared on stage on a melodrama written for Oakley The Western Girl. In 1903, she sued two Chicago newspapers that falsely reported her of being arrested for stealing. Thus, she spent the next six years filing suit against 55 newspapers in the largest libel action the country had ever seen, winning or settling 54 of those.

Throughout her life, Oakley campaigned for equal pay for women for equal work. She had always been vocal about battling discrimination in the economic arena and advocating the participation of women in the military. She urged that women should be appointed for service in the Spanish-American War as sharpshooters. Notably, Oakley was a key influence in creation of the image of the American cowgirl, providing substantial evidence that women are as capable as men.

Annie Oakley died on November 3, 1926. Frank Butler, to whom she had been married for 50 years, died 18 days later.