With the ever increasing wave of feminism arising this century, it is important to travel back in time and explore the life of one of the most distinguished American feminists: Annie Oakley. With her sharp shooting skills and her ideology that women are as independent as men, she believed women should be taught how to shoot and to be able to carry a gun with them for emergency protection. Oakley opened the door to future feminist movements in addition to her own. Through her social status and her ability to take on any male opponent, she proved that being a woman does not limit a person’s ability to hold any position in society or perform any activity.
Given name Phoebe Ann Moses, Annie Oakley was born in 1860 and suffered through a dramatic upbringing in which she experienced the loss of her biological father as well as her step-father, along with being sent away to a farm; she lived with a different family where she was forced to perform arduous labor both inside and outside of the household. 1 After years of being treated as a slave and being repeatedly abused on the farm, she returned home where she was then forced to pay her mother’s $200 monthly mortgage at the age of fifteen. She took to shooting game, which she had learned from her father at a young age, to sell to nearby hotels and marketplaces in order to meet the mortgage payment. After boasting for years about her shooting skills, she found herself invited to a challenge against one of the best shooters at the time, Frank E. Butler. When she shot against him, he was amazed at her skills and became fond of her after she won the challenge, and the two married shortly thereafter. The two traveled throughout the country and were invited to star in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. After performing with her husband and allowing him the main spotlight throughout their relationship, Annie eventually reached a turning point in which she had become the star of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, known as the “Champion Markswoman,” and Butler, feeling inferior beside her, retired and became her manager. 2
After sixteen years of extensive travelling to many countries, and given the incredible opportunity to meet many famous individuals along with kings and queens, Annie and her husband decided to quit the show and retire to a relaxing life in Cambridge, Maryland. Although she retired at an early age, she wrote to the current president at the time, William McKinley, asking to be sent to the front line in the Spanish-American War, to which she received no response. Then, when World War I erupted, Annie offered to hold shooting lessons in order to help teach young men how to shoot properly without injuring themselves or their fellow soldiers; however, her offer was declined. Years later, she decided to make her comeback and begin to perform in shows, but after a car accident, and then a train accident in which she was injured along with her husband, she was too frail to do much, and the Butlers relocated to Annie’s hometown where she worked on her memoirs, which would be published and distributed throughout the country.
Although there is still much debate today on whether Annie Oakley was truly an advocate for women’s equality in the United States or if she continued the “ladylike” expectations that were apparent in the country, it is clear that she was able to obtain a sense of belonging in what was a man’s world. She spent a large majority of her time helping to teach women how to shoot a gun safely, and it is estimated that she helped approximately fifteen thousand women to do so. Oakley is viewed as a complex woman today because she was seen as petite and fragile; however, she earned her place in society by her talent and ability to prove that she was just as capable, if not more, than any man at her time. In addition, her fame made her a public figure, which gave her power to stand up for other women at the time and produce a new image of women that had not been widely seen previously—that of independence. Contradictory to many beliefs, she did not politically take sides with other feminists of her time, but instead showed those around her that she possessed skills that were previously never demonstrated by a woman. 3 Oakley was very aware of her role in society, both in the United States and internationally, and made a point to be as feminine as she could be in order to show that even the most ladylike females are capable of doing tasks and performing “manly” activities. Along with being a sharp shooter, Annie took up riding a bicycle, which was also considered a “man’s sport” at the time, and made a point of showing that it should be acceptable for a woman to participate in sports and that these sports should not be confined to a specific gender. Oakley succeeded in making a name for women all across the world and proved to many countries that she traveled to that one’s gender makes no difference. She demonstrated that both genders are capable of participating in sports that had been male dominated in the centuries preceding her. 4
- Ron Soodalter, “Annie Oakley vs. Hearst’s Worst,” Wild West 27, no. 5 (February 2015): 30. ↵
- Mary E. Virginia, “Annie Oakley,” Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia, 2016, http://blume.stmarytx.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=88806878&site=eds-live&scope=site. ↵
- Lisa Bernd, “Annie Oakley and the disruption of Victorian expectations,” Theatre Symposium 20 (2012): 42. ↵
- Sarah Russell Cansler, “Annie Oakley, Gender, and Guns: The ‘Champion Rifle Shot’ and Gender Performance, 1860-1926,” Pursuit: The Journal of Undergraduate Research at the University of Tennessee 5, no. 1 (March 2014): 164. ↵
124 comments
Idaly Oropeza
Loved reading this article! As a young woman in todays society, not supporting feminism just doesn’t feel right. I feel that Annie Oakley went against many social norms to prove her point. For example, shooting guns, just as well as men, but still showing class and her feminine side. Many women in todays time can relate and be inspired, not so much in the sense of shooting guns, but more in the sense that because she went against norms so can we.
Hoa Vo
Thank you Rachel White for writing the article about this admirable woman. I like the way you pointed out how distinguished is Annie Oakley, her strength in shooting led to her fame nowadays as she also opened the door to future feminist movements. The transition between your first paragraph and the second paragraph, from her noticeable information to her biography is smooth and well-written. I really adore this independent woman as she ignored society’s prejudice and did whatever she wanted.
Veronica Lopez
Amazing article! It really shows a different side of how women are perceived in history. I enjoyed reading this article because I remember seeing Rachel White in one of the children’s books I used to read. She really caught my eye because I’ve never seen a woman of that time holding a gun. It wasn’t very lady-like back in the day. By the way, I loved the pictures you used, it really brought the article to life.
Erika Longoria
This article highlights all the amazing things about Annie Oakley. She went against the social norms during this time period and did what was considered “manly”. She showed many people that women, just like men, can shoot a gun and still show their femininity. It’s sad to see that she didn’t get the respect or admiration she deserved as she also contributed to the feminist movement like this.
Leon Martinez III
While reading this article, I felt like I knew Annie Oakley . It is amazing as well as sad to know that even though she was a better marksman than her male counterparts, it is extremely unfortunate that at this time in history women where revered to be less than equal to a man. Oakley proved this to be wrong 100 times over but never was looked at a colleague, rather only as a side show. I’d like to give the writer of this article a standing ovation for being able to give such insight on this historical figure. Great Job!!
Anthony Dinh
The story really compliments the style of writing that adds a lot of description. The comparison between her and what is considered manly like, and what she is supposed to act like a ladylike. The writer really deictics the contrast from manly sports, which happened to be shooting guns. The whole message Anne Oakley portrays is the non-traditional roles women are supposed to act like in society. This essay did a very good job on depicting the strong woman she is to be able to make an impact on society with these changes
Geraldine Fry
I love stories about the wild west, so I was excited to see someone do a story on the sharpshooting Annie Oakley. I can’t believe she was in the famous amazing Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show and even became the star of the shooting show. She was incredible all around, she was ladylike, was very talented, and very beautiful. It was great that she was able to show the world that women are just as capable as men.
Hoa Vo
Annie Oakley was a talented and amazing woman. She was brave enough to show her shooting talent, ride a bicycle, and teach other people which was considered as “not for women” by society in those days. There are many ways to fight for the Feminist, and in this case, Annie proved that she could do whatever she want that a man can do. She also taught a lot of women to know how to shoot to protect themselves. Thank you for providing this article, it gives me more knowledge about this admirable person.
Velma Castellanos
I have never heard of Annie Oakley until now. She sounded interesting because at that time it was considered unladylike to shoot a gun. She sounded like she had a bad childhood with her dads dying then her mom forcing her to pay 200 dollars. You have to admire the way she took up a gun and showed people that we can shoot just as well as a man could. She did indeed demonstrate that both genders can do sports as well as men. Overall this was an interesting read for me and you did great writing it.
Andrew Molina
I find the story extremely interested but also left me wondering why Annie isn’t a household name or more well appreciated and well known, it really is a shame in all honesty. Its crazy when you take into account all the crap that women had to put up with back in the day, it must’ve been extremely cool to women that they have a spokeswomen that helped have them a voice when it came to things that weren’t socially acceptable for women, not only recreational things, but things that have to do with there well being and protection. I think think it’s neat how the author takes into account all the cool accomplishments she had and makes shine in the forefront of this article. Its crazy how the military didn’t want her help in any shape or form, obviously stemming from the social times of the day. It’s just facisating she was able to make something to manly and make it accessible to women in a degree, but along with that, it’s crazy how she never aligned herself with any feminist group, all while being a femanin women when she needed to.