(Women's History Month) The Story of Mary Fields aka "Stagecoach Mary" (c. 1832 - 1914)

Subscribe to our education YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxtDczKFAGnBkpECH3kjziALearn more about Mary Fields aka "Stagecoach Mary" by Shelby Amspacher; Intern, Department of Education and Visitor Services (2020)https://postalmuseum.si.edu/stagecoach-mary-fieldsStanding six feet tall and powerful, many bandits learned to stay clear of Stagecoach Mary in the American Old West. Stagecoach Mary Fields carried a gun, smoked, drank and had a wicked temper. Mary was the first African American woman to carry mail on a Star Route for the United States Post Office Department. Mary Fields was born into slavery in either 1832 or 1833; her exact birthday is unknown. Mary's birthplace and other details about her early childhood are also unknown. What is known is that she worked for the Warner family in West Virginia in the years leading up to the Civil War. Mary was emancipated in 1863 or shortly after the Civil War; she then moved from West Virginia and went up the Mississippi River where she worked on steamboats. #womenshistorymonth #womenshistory #maryfields #stagecoachmary