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these were "merely an exhibition of individual freedom." She was
also known to have quite a mouth on her. Displaying the English
of an uneducated woman at the best of times, it didn't take much
for her to descend into some of the worst swearing and vulgar
language of the time—especially when she was drinking—which
was often.
Despite her flaws, she was known to have been a very gener-
ous, caring person. There are accounts of her nursing sick and
injured soldiers back to health while she was a camp "mascot."
One of the best examples of this was her caregiving during the
smallpox outbreak in Deadwood during the late 1870s where
she looked after many of the stricken. Perhaps because of this,
the town of Deadwood chipped in to buy her a plot next to her
friend, Wild Bill Hickok, when she passed away there in 1903 at
the age of 47.
There is much about the legend of Calamity Jane that is not
exactly not true. However, we do know enough about her to
know that she was a "people person." She was fond of storytell-
ing and was good at spinning great yarns for the pure sake of
entertainment. She was generally a kind person, but above all,
she lived life on her terms, fiercely individualistic and totally
outrageous!
Castle City, Montana during its heyday. Martha briefly ran a café here in 1896
Mingling with tourists, Yellowstone, 1897.
Note bundle of her autobiography pamphlets in her hands
