Calamity Jane (1852-1903) was the nickname of Martha Canary (or Cannary), a notorious American frontierswoman. There are many stories about how she got her nickname. According to one, she used to warn men that to offend her was to court calamity.
Canary was born near Princeton, Missouri, on May 1, 1852. In 1865, she moved with her parents to Virginia City, Montana. They separated, and Martha was raised there and in other mining camps in Wyoming and Utah. She learned to be a skilled horsewoman and an expert with a rifle and revolver. She usually dressed in men’s clothes.
Many wild stories exist about Canary, most of which she made up herself. She may have become associated with the 7th Cavalry of the United States Army near Rawlins, Wyoming. Some writers believe that because of her knowledge of the frontier territory, she served as a scout for Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer. She is thought to have spent some time at Fort Bridger and Fort Russell in Wyoming, and also to have lived in Denver, Colorado.
In 1875, Canary went to the Black Hills area of South Dakota. She lived in the town of Deadwood at the time of a gold rush in the area, and she was praised as a heroine for helping treat victims of a smallpox outbreak there in 1878. Calamity Jane appeared in various Wild West shows until about 1902. By then, years of alcoholism had broken her health. She died on Aug. 1, 1903, and is buried in Deadwood.
