STAGECOACH MARY

Uncategorized 4 Minutes

Would-be mail thieves didn’t stand a chance against Stagecoach Mary. The hard-drinking, quick-shooting mail carrier sported two guns and men’s clothing. Bandits beware: In 1890s Montana, would-be mail thieves didn’t stand a chance against Stagecoach Mary.

As the first African American woman to carry mail, she stood out on the trail—and became a Wild West legend. Rumor had it that she’d fended off an angry pack of wolves with her rifle, had “the temperament of a grizzly bear,” and was not above a gunfight. But how much of Stagecoach Mary’s story is myth?

Stagecoach Mary

Born Mary Fields in around 1832, Fields was born into slavery, and like many other enslaved people, her exact date of birth is not known. Even the place of her birth is questionable, though historians have pinpointed Hickman County, Tennessee as the most likely location. At the time, enslaved people were treated like pieces of a property; their numbers were recorded in record books, their names were not.

Her story becomes clearer after the end of the Civil War, when she was freed. Many formerly enslaved people headed north to friendlier territory. So did Fields, who seems to have gone up the Mississippi River working on riverboats and acting as a servant and laundress for families along the way. She ended up in Ohio, living a life that was well outside the norm—in a convent.

Ursuline Convent of the Sacred Heart

It’s not clear how Fields discovered the Ursuline Convent of the Sacred Heart in Toledo, Ohio. Some accounts say she accompanied a daughter of the Warner family to the convent. Others say she headed there with a family friend who was a nun.

The religious community, which still exists today, was serene and disciplined. There, Fields worked as a groundskeeper. Her gruff style and penchant for cursing raised eyebrows in the quiet convent. When asked how her journey to Toledo was, she reportedly told one of the nuns that she was ready for “a good cigar and a drink.” Historical records show that the nuns complained about her volatile temper and her “difficult” nature.

According to historian Dee Garceau-Hagen, one nun remembered Fields’ wrath when anyone disturbed her lovingly kept grounds, saying “God help anyone who walked on the lawn after Mary had cut it.” Fields also tussled with the nuns over her wages—behavior that would have shocked white women who expected African Americans to be well behaved and subservient.

Mother Amadeus Dunne 1884

Though Fields struggled to adjust to the sheltered life of the convent, she did make a friend: Mother Amadeus Dunne, the convent’s Mother Superior. Known for her fearlessness and charisma, Dunne was called to missionary work by her bishop and headed to Montana where she founded an Ursuline convent there in 1884. There, she assisted Jesuit priests who were starting schools for the Blackfeet Nation. In 1885, Fields got word that the beloved nun was gravely ill, and headed to Montana to help her.

The West suited Fields, who nursed Dunne back to health and began working for her new convent near Cascade, Montana. But though she faithfully served the nuns in the harsh, sparsely populated community, news of her subversive behavior reached the bishop, who raised serious concerns about Fields’ habits of drinking, smoking, shooting guns and wearing men’s clothing. When Fields and the convent’s male janitor pointed guns at one another during an argument, it was the final straw.

Kicked out of the convent, Fields was on her own—and she set about living a life that was shocking by 19th-century standards. She took in laundry and did odd jobs, started businesses and became known for liking hard liquor and gunfights.

Stagecoach Mary

This tough reputation ended up paying off. In 1895, she got a contract from the postal service to become a star route carrier—an independent contractor who carried mail using a stagecoach donated by Mother Amadeus. It suited Fields to a tee. As a star carrier, her job was to protect the mail on her route from thieves and bandits and to deliver mail. She was only the second woman in the United States (and the first African American woman) to serve in that role.

Representative image

“Stagecoach Mary” or “Black Mary,” as she was nicknamed, carried a rifle and a revolver. She met trains with mail, then drove her stagecoach over rocky, rough roads and through snow and inclement weather. And though she intimidated would-be thieves with her height and her tough demeanor, she became beloved by locals, who praised her generosity and her kindness to children.

For eight years, Fields protected and delivered the mail. Eventually age caught up to her and she retired. The community rallied to support her, despite occasional dust-ups with neighbors. Local restaurateurs gave her free meals; saloon regulars chatted with her until bars became forbidden to woman due to a town ordinance. When she died on December 5, 1914, her funeral was one of the largest the town had ever seen.

Notice in Newspaper

Because of scant records and the temptation to create Wild West legends out of ordinary people, many facts about Field’s life are still fuzzy. What is clear is that her real-life persona was extraordinary enough to draw plenty of attention on its own. Mary Fields didn’t need to be a myth to stand out from the crowd—but she didn’t seem to mind her outsized reputation.

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Published by NebraskaFilly

Army veteran (1976-1979), retired with entirely too much time on my hands

Published

168 thoughts on “STAGECOACH MARY”

    2. wasn’t that .40 drop the Fed tax per gal that Biden had the Feds remove?

      and now some of the States will increase their tax …

      Liked by 2 people

            1. Oh no! That’s high dollar there! Hopefully your Homeowner’s insurance will pay for it? I had insurance for the first few years but it was just too danged expensive. My HVAC goes out, I’m on my own.

              Liked by 1 person

              3. Thanks Filly … It will wipe out my savings … the kids are going to help out… I just hope we can get it done with all the shortages … may move away from propane … and if so, will need even more $$ for another electrical panel + unknown expenses…

                we’ll get through it … grandson and bride are super ready to help me w/ expenses

                Liked by 2 people

  4. Liked by 1 person

  6. The Bee:

    U.S. — According to recent polling data, the Americans described by Jill Biden as “breakfast tacos” are inexplicably switching to the Republican Party in record numbers.

    “We aren’t sure why the Latinx, who are as special and unique as a breakfast taco — or maybe a toasted cheddar chalupa — are leaving the Democrats,” said Dr. Jill Biden while performing routine spinal surgery on one of her patients. “Don’t they know how much we Democrats care about their vote? Perhaps we need more abortions and drag queen story hours.”

    Local breakfast taco Carlos Hernandez isn’t convinced. “You know, I’m just not sure the Democrats really care about me,” he said as he entered church on Sunday with his family.

    Another local breakfast taco, Valentina Gonzalez, agrees. “I’m just not sure Democrat values are my values,” she said as she fired her favorite AR-15 at the local gun range. “Am I allowed to say that?”

    At publishing time, several breakfast egg rolls were beginning to think the same thing.
    ——————
    U.S. — In a bid to get WNBA star Brittney Griner out of Russian prison and back home to the states where she belongs, Americans have eagerly stepped up to offer up LeBron James as a substitute.

    “Please, bring Brittney back home,” says a Change.org petition approaching 200 million signatures. “If you want someone, please take LeBron. We will happily ship him to the Siberian prison of your choice for free.”

    Even President Biden weighed in on the matter, saying: “It’s time to bring that tall, clean, articulate young fella home. Wow! Tall guy, long hair! Not cool Putin! You can have Corn Pop instead! I tried to wrap this chain around his head and he flopped on the ground like a little sissy! Come on, man!”

    Griner reported being happy to hear of the petition but concerned that LeBron might not last long in a tough Russian prison where people foul you all the time and there are no refs to stop it. The State Department says that if the petition reaches 250 million signatures, they will consider placing LeBron on a plane to Moscow.

    Upon hearing the news, LeBron immediately cried out in pain and flopped down to the ground.
    ——————–
    WASHINGTON, D.C. — According to sources, senior White House aides are still searching for a Biden they can send out in public following recent gaffes and federal crimes committed by Joe, Jill, and Hunter Biden.

    The pressure to find a member of the Biden family who will not do the administration harm has resulted in the resignation of numerous employees including former press secretary Jen Psaki. When asked to comment on the growing scandals within the White House, Psaki laughed wildly over the phone and hung up.

    “I don’t know if I can take it anymore,” said one aide who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity. “When the first lady compared Mexicans to breakfast tacos I absolutely lost it. And don’t get me started on the President. I have to wear a hair net to keep him from trying to sniff me. I look like I work at McDonald’s!”

    “At least Hunter doesn’t live in the White House.”

    Some have put forward the president’s daughter, Ashley, as a potential Biden to show off to the public. Her social activism and sense of fashion have tested well with focus groups. Unfortunately, her alleged diary which details sexual abuse within the Biden family has placed her squarely on the “no show” list.

    At publishing time, it was reported that Joe Biden has submitted his DNA to Ancestry.com in hopes of finding a relative suitable to be shown in public.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. PROVIDENCE, RI — According to the results of a new study conducted by Brown University, exactly 100% of work meetings ever held in all of human history, across all industries and sectors, have been entirely unnecessary.

      Researchers followed careful criteria while observing real-life business meetings to understand what constitutes a successful meeting. Successful meetings, they said, would qualify as a valid use of time. Researchers took detailed notes on employee engagement, follow through on meeting action plans, and whether or not meetings were actually about something. In all meetings observed, none met the criteria of a successful meeting and were thus deemed a complete waste of time.

      “My team sat in on over 3,000 meetings. All of them met with disaster,” said Dr. Ansul Sundilhop. “I, myself, once witnessed a meeting in which the person who called the meeting had no idea he had done so. Employees sat quietly for twenty minutes waiting for someone to speak before giving up and returning to their workstations.”

      “The amount of data we’ve put together from this study has been astronomical. I really hope it’ll help businesses improve their efficiency and work relationships,” he added. Highlights from the study include:

      – Over 83% of meetings end with employees confused about who does what.

      – 4-5% of meetings feature a sleeping employee.

      – Employees invited to mandatory work meetings are 91% more likely to experience suicidal thoughts.

      – Over half of all meetings are put together so that one ambitious employee can show off to their boss that they can run a meeting.

      According to sources, business leaders have taken the results of the study to heart and are currently holding meetings to brainstorm alternatives to meetings. “There must be something we can do,” said Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. “I’m going to have to put the finest members of my team together to figure this out!”

      Liked by 1 person

  7. copied from tcth…something doesn’t pass the sniff test

    BeAChooser
    July 13, 2022 1:44 pm

    UPDATE on the 10 year old rape story …

    https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/2022/07/13/columbus-man-charged-rape-10-year-old-led-abortion-in-indiana/10046625002/

    “Arrest made in rape of Ohio girl that led to Indiana abortion drawing international attention

    A Columbus man has been charged with impregnating a 10-year-old Ohio girl, whose travel to Indiana to seek an abortion led to international attention following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade and activation of Ohio’s abortion law.

    Gershon Fuentes, 27, whose last known address was an apartment on Columbus’ Northwest Side, was arrested Tuesday after police say he confessed to raping the child on at least two occasions. He’s since been charged with rape, a felony of the first degree in Ohio.

    Columbus police were made aware of the girl’s pregnancy through a referral by Franklin County Children Services that was made by her mother on June 22, Det. Jeffrey Huhn testified Wednesday morning at Fuentes’ arraignment. On June 30, the girl underwent a medical abortion in Indianapolis, Huhn said.

    Huhn also testified that DNA from the clinic in Indianapolis is being tested against samples from Fuentes, as well as the child’s siblings, to confirm contribution to the aborted fetus.

    Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Cynthia Ebner said the case did not warrant Fuentes — who is believed to be undocumented — to be held without bond.

    Ebner said a high bond was necessary, however, due to Fuentes being a possible flight risk and for the safety of the child involved. Before being arrested, Huhn and Det. David Phillips collected a saliva sample from Fuentes, according to a probable cause statement.
    Ebner set a $2 million bond for Fuentes, who is being held in the Franklin County jail.”

    ———————

    So maybe it happened after all? But something about this story still doesn’t make sense.

    Yesterday, the Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said he hadn’t heard word about this and that there was no investigation going on. He said on Fox News that “We have regular contact with prosecutors and local police and sheriffs and not a whisper anywhere.” He said “my office runs the state crime lab. Any case like this you’re going to have a rape kit, you’re going to have biological evidence, and you would be looking for DNA analysis. There is no case request for analysis that looks anything like this.” Yet now, one day later, they have arrested and are charging someone? It’s very curious. If it really happened then it looks like Republican Dave Yost’s subordinates ALL set him up to look foolish.

    Also, if the mother reported this, (and according to this article she did so a week before the girl had the abortion in Indiana), then the abortionist may be in the clear as a mandated reporter but the still unnamed doctor in Ohio violated the Mandated Reporter law by not reporting this immediately. Why isn’t his name being mentioned? And why did it take so long to arrest the guy (if they knew his name) or for the authorities to even mention the rape? They let people like Sundance go out on the limb by pointing out the reason the story looked fake . Either that was their purpose, or something about this story still doesn’t feel right. Guess we’ll have to wait and see.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. right??? did they set the Ohio AG up to look like a fool? he said no investigation yesterday…today? BOOM this guy confesses???
        he’s an illegal..thanks dems for ruining another american life…
        this guy should HANG…be a deterrent to all other illegals thinking they can rape 10 yr olds…NO DEPORTMENT!!!!!!!!! he’ll only come back if this is true at all…
        I don

        Liked by 1 person

  8. Entire Article @ BB: “Barack Obama scolded Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX), his own White House physician and former President Donald Trump’s, after Jackson criticized then-candidate Joe Biden’s mental health on Twitter during the 2020 presidential campaign.

    “I have to express my disappointment at the cheap shot you took at Joe Biden via Twitter. It was unprofessional and beneath the office that you once held,” Obama wrote in an email to Jackson in 2020.

    “It was also disrespectful to me and the many friends you had in our administration,” Obama continued, making the tweet about himself. “You were the personal physician to the President of the United States as well as an admiral in the U.S. Navy. I expect better, and I hope upon reflection that you will expect more of yourself in the future.”

    Obama condemned Jackson’s professional analysis minutes after the physician suggested on Twitter that Biden needed to take a cognitive test. “Remember the cognitive test that I gave @realDonaldTrump? The one he aced! Sounds like somebody else might need some testing done!! Scary!!” Jackson commented as he retweeted a video of Biden’s “latest cognitive misadventure.”

    Obama’s disparaging email to Jackson is in contrast to 2022 polling data. Sixty-two percent believe Biden is not fit to be president because he is too old. A majority of voters believe Biden is unfit to be president and doubt his mental ability. Fifty-nine percent are worried about his mental and physical fitness.

    Jackson told Fox News that the exchange, which he chronicles in an upcoming memoir, was the last communication he had with his former boss. “It’s awfully ironic now, considering [Biden’s mental fitness] is all anyone, including the liberal media, can talk about,” Jackson said about recent polling. Jackson also told Fox News that Biden’s cognitive failures are on full display for the whole world to see.”

    “Let it be known, as the White House physician for the last three presidents, I was the first to say that we have a serious problem with this man’s cognitive demise, and he will not make it four years in office,” Jackson continued. “I’ve always said there would come a point where it wouldn’t be just me talking about it, but his own party, and sadly, that has proven to be the case.”

    Liked by 1 person

  9. EXCERPT: “Former equalities minister Kemi Badenoch appears to be emerging as the preferred choice of the small-c conservative base of the Conservative party in the contest to replace liberal-minded Boris Johnson as the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

    To the dismay of the far-left in Britain, the conservative right seems to be coalescing around the Nigerian heritage MP for Saffron Walden, Kemi Badenoch, 42, who emerged as a champion in the struggle against Black Lives Matter and Critical Race Theory and has argued against the big spending and high tax philosophy that has defined Tory rule over the past decade.

    Anglican Deacon and conservative political commentator for GB News, Calvin Robinson told Breitbart London that he is supporting Badenoch because “it would be great to see a conservative leader of the Conservative Party.”

    “Kemi Badenoch believes in the free market, limited government and a strong nation. She’s an active promoter of family values and is not suspectible to woke nonsense. Her straight talking approach is exactly what’s needed right now.

    “Kemi is the only candidate who can unite the Right of the party. It’s important we don’t get another globalist establishment figure leading the country, the Right should all get behind Kemi to provide a united front against the obvious candidates.”

    Making it through to the first round of voting amongst MPs on Wednesday, Badenoch topped the survey of the Tory Party aligned Telegraph newspaper, appearing to signal a strong support among the actual membership of the party. She has routinely come near-top in other recent polls attempting to take the temperature in this race.”

    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2022/07/13/shock-development-as-actual-conservative-emerges-as-potential-uk-pm/

    Liked by 1 person

  10. I don’t understand why he seems to have such a problem with Elon…..

    EXCERPT: “Former President Donald Trump continued his attacks against billionaire Elon Musk from his platform Truth Social on Tuesday, saying he’d be “worthless” without government subsidies. Recalling the billionaire’s visit to the White House during his presidency, Trump said that Musk wanted government subsidies for many of his projects that offered big promises without delivering many rewards. Trump said:

    When Elon Musk came to the White House asking me for help on all of his many subsidized projects, whether it’s electric cars that don’t drive long enough, driverless cars that crash, or rocketships to nowhere, without which subsidies he’d be worthless, and telling me how he was a big Trump fan and Republican. The former president further said Elon Musk would have dropped to his knees and begged if he had asked him to during that meeting.

    “I could have said, ‘drop to your knees and beg,’ and he would have done it,” said Trump. “Now Elon should focus on getting himself out of the Twitter mess because he could owe $44 billion for something that’s perhaps worthless. Also, lots of competition for electric cars!”

    Trump’s hits against Musk on Truth Social comes after he referred to the billionaire as a “bullshit artist” following his backing out of the acquisition of Twitter.”

    https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/07/12/trump-bashes-elon-musk-on-truth-social-hed-be-worthless-without-government-subsidies/

    Liked by 1 person

    1. i don’t know…but his point is valid…without government subsidies they never would have gotten as far as they did with ev’s…same with solar and wind power–we are propping them up so they can reap the benefits…

      and musk fired the first shot when he said it was time for trump to stand aside…

      Liked by 1 person

  11. Entire Article @ BB: “Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) has lost the confidence of many Wyoming Republican voters heading into the August 16 primary against Trump-endorsed challenger Harriet Hageman.

    While Cheney has spent most of the campaign season in Washington, DC, with Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) partisan January 6 committee, a former Cheney donor, Nancy Donovan, who has given over $35,000 to Cheney’s past campaigns, is now questioning Cheney’s mental state.

    “I sit there watching the January 6 hearings and I think: ‘Have you lost your mind?’” she told the Financial Times. “This man [Trump] has every major institution going after him, from the media to the swamp in Washington, DC, and now to have one of his own party do the same thing?”

    Cheney has also been criticized by leaders in the state. The chair of the Teton County Republican party, Mary Martin, echoed Donovan’s sentiments. “Liz has broken a lot of people’s trust and that is against the cowboy code,” she told the Times.

    Hageman, who is leading the race by 28 and 30 points, has additionally pointed to Cheney’s participation in the January 6 committee as an act of betrayal. Cheney “does not represent us and she has betrayed us,” she told the publication. She said:

    [Cheney] spends her time on the January 6 committee. She has stated very, very, very clearly that her priority is to block Donald Trump from ever being elected… People care about inflation and about the open border and about protection of our jobs and protection of our schools and protection of our kids. That’s not what she cares about right now.

    On Sunday, Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) warned that from his interaction with Wyoming voters, Cheney could lose her primary. “Now the election isn’t for another month,” Barrasso told Fox News. “The travel that I have done around the state, I think she has a lot of work to do if she hopes to win the primary.”

    Barrasso also criticized Cheney’s alliance with Democrats on the January 6 committee. “Wyoming politics is very personal,” Barrasso said. “It’s face-to-face. It’s town to town, and as you know, Liz and I disagree. I voted against the impeachment of President Trump. She was for it. I voted against the partisan January 6 commission. She’s all in on that.”

    Cheney has been in hot water with the Republican Party after opposing former President Donald Trump, voting to impeach him, and participating in the January 6 Committee, which has sought to investigate the January 6 Capitol incident without focusing on the alleged FBI informants there.

    Cheney’s conduct has drawn condemnation from the Wyoming Republican Party and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. After the Wyoming GOP voted in November to no longer recognize her as a Republican, McCarthy announced in February his endorsement of Hageman to defeat Cheney, a rare move for a minority leader.”

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Entire article (video @ link):

    Patients looking outside their windows at Norton Children’s Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, were given something very special to smile about on Monday. A crew from Pro-Clean International, a local window washing company, dressed as popular superheroes for their job at the Children’s Hospital to give some struggling patients a surprise. The window cleaners were dressed as iconic characters from comic books and movies, such as Iron Man, Batman, Deadpool, and Superman, plus other heroes.

    Joe Haist, CEO of Pro-Clean International, told WRDB that his company had been doing this for about five years. They first started dressing up as Santa Clause and elves, and eventually, the crew began dressing as superheroes. You can see them, they’re in pain and then they look over at you and they smile,” Haist told WRDB. “That’s when you know the magic is happening.”

    Emmett Ramser, Chief Administrative Officer of Norton Children’s Hospital, told WLKY that “it certainly makes a day that can be tough much much better for these kids.”

    Haist got the idea when he spent time at the same hospital for his child, who has special needs. “I have a special needs child that was born blind with special needs,” Haist told WRDB, “I know that sometimes you go to the hospital, you’re there for a long time and there’s not a lot to see or do and there’s not a lot of happiness. So it’s really a great moment to really kind of bring people some happiness.”

    He also told WLKY that he would have parents come up and hug him, thanking him for bringing happiness into their children’s lives. “And they say it’s for the kids, but you also say ‘it’s for them,’” Haist said, referring to the parents, acknowledging it can be stressful for them too. Footage from the local outlets’ reports showed children visibly excited and smiling as the superhero window washers appeared and interacted with them outside their windows.

    The process of cleaning all the windows at the hospital takes around two to three days, WLKY noted, giving the superheroes plenty of time to bring smiles to some struggling patients.”

    https://www.breitbart.com/local/2022/07/12/superhero-window-washers-smiles-patients-childrens-hospital-kentucky/

    Liked by 2 people

  16. Right-Wing and Left-Wing Unite to Ban ‘COVID PASS’ in France

    Jubilant scenes Tuesday night in French parliament as Marine Le Pen’s National Rally and Jean-Luc Melenchon’s La France Insoumise defeated Macron’s ‘COVID Pass.’

    https://t.me/ResistorNewswire/4649

    vid clip at link

    Liked by 2 people

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