Her mother died of pneumonia in Blackfoot, Montana, and her father passed away afterward in Salt Lake City.
So, by the ripe age of only fifteen years old, Calamity had to fend for herself.
She eventually settled in Piedmont, Wyoming– which is about seventy-five miles away from Salt Lake City, and worked at a boarding house.
And even though Calamity’s autobiography detailed her teenage years as being filled with numerous dangerous missions during the American Indian Wars, historians believe she likely spent most of her time as a dancer and laundress throughout the Wyoming railroad.
The Start Of “Calamity Jane”
So, how did young Martha Jane come to be known as the most rebellious and hardened woman in the Wild West?
Well, while living in Wyoming, she began to cultivate a personality never before seen among women.
Calamity already knew how to shoot as well as other cowboys. Plus, she refused to dress like the other women of her time and instead opted for more traditionally “male” items– like trousers, coats, and hats. Calamity also chewed tobacco and could stand up against other countrymen in any drinking contests.
And even though these habits quickly pushed her to fame throughout the region, just how exactly Martha Jane came to be dubbed “Calamity Jane” has remained a mystery with a few theories.
The Tales Behind Calamity Jane
The first theory involves Martha Jane rescuing a man during a Native American raid. Apparently, the man was shot while riding a horse, and Martha Jane swooped in to save him. Then, after she pulled him onto her horse, the man allegedly dubbed her a heroine.