Annie Oakley for her, "The Western Girl". Oakley played the role of Nancy Berry who used a pistol, a rifle and rope to outsmart a group of outlaws. Throughout her career, it is believed that Oakley taught more than 15,000 women how to use a gun. Oakley believed strongly that it was crucial for women to learn how to use a gun, as not only a form of physical and mental exercise, but also to defend themselves. She said: "I would like to see every woman know how to handle guns as naturally as they know how to handle babies." Buffalo Bill
Annie Oakley they resided. Some people believe she took on the name because that was the name of the man who had paid her train fare when she was a child. They joined "Buffalo Bill's Wild West" in 1885. At five feet tall, Oakley was given the nickname of "Watanya Cicilla" by fellow performer Sitting Bull, rendered "Little Sure Shot" in the public advertisements. During her first engagement with the Buffalo Bill show, Oakley experienced a tense professional rivalry with rifle sharpshooter Lillian Smith. Smith was eleven years younger than Oakley, age 15 at the time she joined the show in 1886,