Monday, March 4, 2013

Stagecoach Mary - A True Pioneer


Mary Fields was born a slave in 1832 in Tennessee. She was owned by Judge Dunn and grew up with his family. She and the judge's daughter Dolly became close. Oddly enough she was taught to read and write. After the Civil War, Mary stayed on the farm with the Dunn family for awhile. Dolly became a nun named Sister Amadeus. The sister asked Mary to join her at the convent but shortly after her arrival Sister Amadeus moved to Montana to become head mistress of a school for Native American girls.

Mary worked as a hired hand at the convent and her duties included chopping wood and picking up supplies. She'd worked hard as a slave and was prepared for the physical labor expected of her. Mary was a six foot tall "gritty, cigar smoking, whiskey drinking, fist fighting, six foot tall black woman."

When she heard Sister Amadeus was sick with pneumonia, Mary traveled to Cascade County in Montana and nursed her back to health. While working at the convent, one of the men found out she made more money than he did. He didn't like it. Their argument turned into a gun fight. Shots flew but no one was hurt. Because of the altercation, Mary was fired and the man got a raise.

Next Mary owned and operated a restaurant, but since she could only cook plain food with little variety, it wasn't successful. When she was around 60 years old, she heard the U.S. Postal Service needed someone to deliver mail from Cascade to the surrounding areas. She proved to be the fastest at hitching a team of six horses and got the job.

Reliability was Mary's motto. When the snow was too deep for the stagecoach to pass, she put on snowshoes and delivered the mail by foot, once by walking ten miles to do so. Driving a stagecoach could be dangerous work due to robbers and Indians. Loaded with a rifle and several hand guns, she was able to hold her own. Thus she earned the name 'Stagecoach Mary.'

Mary was the second woman and the first black woman to ever work for the postal service. She retired when she was 70 and when her garden wasn't enough to keep her busy, she opened a laundry.

Mary was a pioneer and an inspiration to not only African-American women but also to anyone wanting to begin a new venture later in their life. She was unwilling to allow the prejudices of being black and a woman hold her back.

Mary lived a fruitful life and passed away in 1914 in Cascade, Montana. She was so well loved by the citizens of Cascade that every year on her birthday they let school out.

References:
http://www.cascademontana.com/mary.htm

About.comEducationAmerican HistoryStates and TerritoriesAmerican WestStagecoach Mary Fields - A Look at Stagecoach Mary Fields
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Fields

Thanks for stopping by!

13 comments:

  1. The strength and endurance of some of the pioneer women--black or white--amazes me. I never could have done all that, even when I was young. Still, everyone can take a page from her book, and that is, "never sit down." We can always learn something new and do something different.
    The photo is wonderful. I wouldn't tangle with her, that's for sure. Still, she had a gentle, loving heart, too.
    She is a true Woman in History.

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  2. Linda, I've heard of Mary before, but this is a well-done post. Love your banner, too.

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  3. What an amazing story. She was one tough women.

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  4. WOW! I love to read and be inspired by strong women. She's definately on my list as heroines.

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  5. Great story Linda! Love these snippets of unknown history.

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  6. I'd not heard of Stagecoach Mary before. This was a fun post to read, Linda. Thank you! She was tough and to live that long at that time period was also another accomplishment for her.

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  7. Thank you all for your comments. I apologize for not responding to each of you but I've been working on my income tax. Blech!

    Thank you for stopping by!

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  8. What an amazing woman, hardworking and enterprising. Makes me feel lazy. Thanks for sharing, Linda. I did not know of her before.

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  9. Hi Tanya,

    Indeed she enterprising and hardworking. I think her generation has a lot to teach us today.Things are too easy. I bet she could do any job she set her mind to.

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  10. Thank you, Buffalo Soldier 9 for stopping by and sharing your research and knowledge on Mary Fields. I enjoyed learning more about her. Please stop by our blog again sometime.

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  11. Linda, I enjoyed this post! I had not heard of Stagecoach Mary. You really did your research, for sure. Loved learning about Stagecoach Mary.
    Cheryl

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  12. Great post, Linda. I love that schools still let out for her birthday. That's a tribute that will ensure her legacy lives on.

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  13. Sorry I'm so late getting here to read your article. I had not heard of Stagecoach Mary until I read this. What a fantastic woman.

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