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Fans of Annie Oakley sought the famous shooter out after every performance. In addition to granting requests for autographs, she took time to speak with her followers who wanted to know all about her. As a courtesy to her devotees, she supplied them with a short list of facts about herself.

1. I was born in Woodland, Ohio.

2. I learned to shoot in the field.

3. I do not think I inherited my love of firearms from my parents, for they were Quakers, and were very much opposed to my using such weapons.

4. Having traveled in fourteen countries, and having hunted in almost all of them, I have shot nearly all kinds of game.

5. While I love to shoot in the field, I care very little for exhibition shooting, and only do it as a matter of business.

To learn more about Annie Oakley and the other women who performed with Cody read Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

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Della Ferrell, Georgia Duffy, and friends preparing to ride.

“Cowgirl is an attitude, really; a pioneer spirit, a special American brand of courage. The cowgirl faces life head on, lives by her own lights and makes no excuses. Cowgirls take stands. They speak up. They defend the things they hold dear. A cowgirl might be a rancher, or a barrel racer, or a bull rider, or an actress. But she’s just as likely to be a checker at the local Winn Dixie, a full-time mother, a banker, an attorney, or an astronaut.” – Dale Evans

Georgia Duffy and Della Ferrell were members of an elite group of Western cowgirls billed as Beautiful Rancheras. Della was from Colorado and Georgia hailed from Wyoming. Della joined the Wild West program in 1897; Georgia in 1886.

The two women appeared in relay racing acts together and separately performed rope and riding routines. They were expert horsewomen whether riding astride or sidesaddle. A courier for Buffalo Bill’s Wild West called them “graceful representatives of physical and equestrian beauty.”

To learn more about Georgia Duffy, Della Ferrell and the other women who performed with Cody read

Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

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The polite but enthusiastic applause from 40,000 Londoners brought a huge smile to fifteen-year-old Lillian Smith’s face. Her performance before England’s Queen Victoria was the highlight of her early time with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

It was the fiftieth anniversary of the queen’s rule, and the stands were filled with royalty from across Europe. Lillian had dazzled the onlookers with her marksmanship. Using a .22 rifle, the teenager hit a tin plate thirty times in fifteen seconds and broke ten glass balls hung from strings swinging around a pole. The queen had been so taken by the girl’s talents she asked Lillian be presented to her at the end of the program.

When it came time for Lillian to meet the queen, she led her horse to the royal box, removed her hat, and coaxed her ride into a curtsy. Queen Victoria nodded pleasantly and asked to see Lillian’s gun. Lillian gently turned the weapon over and politely described everything about the rifle that made it special to her. Cody was impressed with the noble women’s attentiveness and with his star’s genial response.

To learn more about Lillian Smith and the other women who performed with Cody read Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

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Nineteen-year-old Fannie Sperry squinted into the sun and drew on the stub of a cigarette in the corner of her mouth. The cowboys working around the Herrin Ranch in Montana eyed her closely as she made for the corral. She was slim beauty with porcelain skin, and her black locks were tucked tightly under a wide-brimmed hat. The ranch hands saw her as a mass of contradictions, an attractive woman one might be inclined to settle down with if not for the fact she could ride and rope like a man.

Fannie paid no attention to the inquisitive stares as she climbed on the wooden posts surrounding a restless bronco. The brick-colored horse known as Blue Dog was a fierce animal, and no one stayed on his back long. Broncobusters at the Herrin determined he was impossible to break. In spite of his surly reputation, Fannie wanted Blue Dog for her own. She saw something promising in the horse no one else did.

After convincing the ranch foreman to accept her mild-mannered horse as trade for Blue Dog, she saddled the outlaw. She spoke gently to the animal as she climbed on his back. He hesitated for a moment. The cowboys looked on, waiting for the cantankerous beast to throw her. Nothing happened. Fannie eased Blue Dog into a walk and rode him out of the corral. The animal that was deemed unridable was tamed in the hands of a Montana horsewoman who would eventually join Buffalo Bill Cody’s program in 1916.

To learn more about Fannie Sperry and the other women who performed with Cody read Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

Off to the Tucson Book Festival. You’ll find me at the Three Amigos and a Lady booth.

Location University of Arizona. Dates: Saturday & Sunday March 14 &15. Hope to see you there.

I’ll also be speaking at the Arizona Historical Society on Friday, March 13 from 4:30-5:30 p.m.

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Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

Senorita Rosalie was the Mexican star of the Wild West Show. She was a stunning black-haired woman who had achieved fame as a trick rider. She would jump over walls and ride holding the reins in her mouth while standing on the back of her horse. With her feet firmly placed on the ground, she would spur her horse on and jump on its back. While the animal was in full gallop, she would fling her body in and out of the saddle and dangle precariously off the sides of the horse. She could even lie down in the saddle and retrieve items left on the arena floor.

Senorita Rosalie’s expertise on a horse made her a highly sought after riding instructor. Many Wild West performers benefited from her horse-back riding advice.

To learn more about the Senorita Rosalie and the other women who performed with Cody read

Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

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A strong gust of wind blew a pair of tumbleweeds into the path of a team of horse hitched to a wagon. It spooked the animals, and they reared and bucked and then bolted. The gray-haired woman holding the reins of the team screamed. The wagon pitched and swayed as the horses jerked it around. The woman cried out for help.

Suddenly a magnificent stallion was hurrying toward the out-of-control wagon. The confident horseback rider, adorned in buckskin britches and a jacket, spurred the stallion along until it caught up to the team. Springing forward, the rider leapt out of the saddle and landed on the back of one of the horses.

The brave rider swerved the team out of the path of a group of townspeople just as they were leaving a church. A shout went up from the onlookers. The lady driving the wagon regained her composure and pulled back on the reins. The daring horseback rider helped quiet the team to a stop.

A thunderous applause echoed around them. The lady in the wagon stood up, removed a gray wig on her head and took a bow. The rider dismounted, removed her cowboy hat, and waved to the crowd of spectators. The audience that had assembled to witness the performance in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show was not disappointed by the expert display of horsemanship exhibited by the high-riding Parry sisters.

To learn more about the Parry Sisters and the other women who performed with Cody read Buffalo Gals: Women of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.