Whether she was shooting a dime in midair or the ash from a cigarette held in her husband’s mouth, Annie Oakley captivated audiences all over the country. Born as Phoebe Ann Mozee in Ohio, dubbed “Annie” by her sisters, the sharpshooter endured a rough childhood. Her father, a veteran in the War of 1812, died in 1866 from pneumonia and overexposure to freezing weather. Her mother remarried, only to be widowed again. During this time, Oakley was put into the care of the superintendent of the county poor farm. It was there that she was exposed to both mental and physical abuse. When she was reunited with her mother, she learned she had remarried for a third time.

During this hardship, Oakley mastered how to use a gun. She started at age 9, shooting game to help support her mother and siblings. By age 16, word of her precise aim had spread throughout the county. Oakley soon met a man by the name of Frank E. Butler, who entered her in a Cincinnati shooting contest. Oakley won not only the contest by one point but also the heart of Butler, a performer and accomplished marksman. They were later married and she became his assistant in his traveling shooting acts. In 1885, the couple joined Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, run by famous showman Buffalo Bill Cody.

Oakley spent 17 years performing as the star attraction in Buffalo Bill’s show. At 90 feet, Oakley could shoot a dime tossed in midair. In one day, Oakley shot 4,472 of 5,000 glass balls that were tossed into the air. With the edge of a playing card facing her at 90 feet, she could hit the card and puncture it several more times before it finally settled to the ground. That’s why free tickets with holes punched in them came to be known as “Annie Oakleys.”

In a more daring performance, Oakley would shoot the ashes off a cigarette held in the mouth of her husband. Once while touring Europe, Wilhelm, crown prince of Germany, challenged Oakley to shoot a cigarette from his own lips. Oakley, not one to deny a challenge, made Wilhelm hold the cigarette in his hand, but still easily accomplished the task.

In 1901, a train wreck left Oakley partially paralyzed due to massive spinal injuries. Though she made a full recovery, she toured less during the latter part of her career. However, her shooting expertise was not affected as she continued to set records. During a shooting contest in North Carolina, Oakley, now 62, hit 100 clay targets from the 16-yard mark.

Annie Oakley died in 1926 of pernicious anemia, in Greenville, Ohio at the age of 66. In her life, Oakley overcame poverty, abuse, and mistreatment with her strong will and character. She broke barriers for women of her time and beyond with her talent and accomplishments in the sport. Oakley continued to be immortalized with the 1946 musical, Annie Get Your Gun.