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
History of rodeo West Shows and Fourth of July celebrations with Buffalo Bill Cody, Annie Oakley, and other charismatic stars lending their glamour and prestige to the spectacle. Oakley was a sharpshooter in Cody's Wild West show (rather than as a rodeo performer), but she created the image of the cowgirl and appeared as the first cowgirl in a western film shot by Thomas Alva Edison in 1894. In the early decades of the twentieth century, rodeo became a spectator sport with round ups, frontier days, and other themed exhibitions attracting regional audiences. In the 1920s, Madison Square Garden and Boston Garden drew