Annie Oakley

Annie Oakley was a famous American sharpshooter and a star of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. She learned to shoot as a child to collect wild game to help support her widowed mother and siblings. She soon began performing in shooting acts at circuses, and eventually became famous worldwide for her incredible shooting abilities. Oakley, a supporter for women's right, was also committed to helping more women to learn to shoot and taught an estimated 15,000 women to shoot during her lifetime. As she once said, "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.” For more stories of remarkable women throughout history, visit our Role Models section.