Annie Oakley
Sharpshooter and Performer
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Annie Oakley was born in 1860 in Darke County, Ohio. Her name was Phoebe Anne Oakley Moses. Her family called her Annie. Annie first learned to shoot when she was 8 years old. By the time she was 12 she could shoot the head off a running quail. Her family was very poor so Annie would shoot and sell game to a grocery store for money. |
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When she was 15 she entered a shooting
contest and beat Frank Butler who was one of
the best shooters in the country. She won the contest using a rifle.
Annie and Frank were married a year later. They traveled around the world in shows doing trick shooting. One of her best tricks was to shoot a rifle over her shoulder using a mirror. She is best known for working in “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.”
Because she grew up poor, Annie spent a lot of time visiting children without mothers and fathers in her spare time. Later in her life she taught American soldiers to shoot during World War I. Annie Oakley is remembered as a western folk hero. She picked up a rifle and found something she could do better than anyone else.
Annie Oakley Timeline
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