History for Kids: An Illustrated Biography of Annie Oakley

Perfect for ages 7-10
Includes pictures

“Aim at the high mark and you will hit it. No, not the first time, not the second time and maybe not the third. But keep on aiming and keep on shooting for only practice will make you perfect. Finally you'll hit the bull's-eye of success.” – Annie Oakley

Everyone has read about history’s most important people and events in dense textbooks and classrooms, but words can only say so much. In Charles River Editors’ Interactive Biography for Kids series, history comes to life in video and audio, allowing your children to not only read history but truly experience it, through the eyes and ears of the people who were there.

The Wild West made legends out of many men who came to be identified with the unforgiving nature and spirit of the frontier. Men like Wyatt Earp have long been celebrated for their toughness, swagger, and fearless courage. So it’s no surprise that the few women who could match the men in toughness and gunplay have also become legends of the West.

There was little about the childhood of Phoebe Ann Mosey that indicated that she would grow up to become Annie Oakley, one of the best sharpshooters the world has ever seen and an icon of the West. Her parents, Jacob and Susan, were Quakers who migrated from Pennsylvania to Darke County, Ohio after a fire destroyed their inn and their livelihood. Their daughter, who would become a national celebrity in her own life for “The Little Sure Shot of the West”, learned her gun skills out of necessity, using them to hunt for food around the Cincinnati area thousands of miles away from the dusty towns, saloons and shootouts that have become symbols the Wild West.

However, Annie would make her own mark by hitting so many marks back east, and by 18 she had made a name for herself by besting other sharpshooters, including Frank Butler, who performed a traveling act and became smitten by the young teen who beat him. Annie and Frank would marry when she was 16, and they continued to perform together until becoming part of Buffalo Bill’s famous show, where Annie became acquainted with other legends like Sitting Bull.

Annie would perform off and on for Buffalo Bill’s show, but she also took her exploits to Europe and even the burgeoning film industry, performing “The Little Sure Shot of the West” for Thomas Edison’s brand new kinetoscope, which could make a film. She also met dignitaries like Queen Victoria and Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany. Annie only became more famous with age, continuing with her skillful performances into her 60s despite a debilitating injury suffered in a car crash, before declining health led to her death at the age of 66 in 1926.

By the time she had died, Annie had become so well known for her marksmanship that other important aspects of her life were largely overlooked, including her philanthropy and her training and encouragement of women. An Interactive Biography of Annie Oakley for Kids chronicles all the aspects of the famous female sharpshooter’s life. Along with videos and pictures of important people, places, and events in her life, your kids will learn about Annie like never before.