Calamity Jane, born Martha Jane Cannary-Burke in 1853 in Missouri, led a highly varied and colorful life. She worked as a scout and fought in the Indian wars in the 1880's, serving occasionally with General Custer. While she got her nickname from telling men that offending her was "courting calamity", she also worked sporadically as a prostitute. In her later life, she joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and even claimed to have had a daughter with Wild Bill Hickock. Doris Day starred in a 1953 film adaptation of Cannary-Burke's life.
Calamity Jane
