Kay Turnbaugh

America’s first female mayor served for one year and was paid $1 Susanna Salter’s name was put on the ballot as a ‘joke’

Some of today’s politicians have defended their questionable behavior by saying it was “a joke.” That’s nothing new. America's first female mayor's name was put on the ballot as a 'joke.' kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/americas-f...

From combat to the stage Marine Sergeant Michele Crowe takes on Annie Oakley

I recently did a talk-back after seeing Annie Get Your Gun in Evergreen, Colorado, shortly after the school shooting there. I shared the stage with the star of the show and one of the first women to be in a combat role in Iran and Afghanistan. We talked cowgirls, Annie Oakley, and strong women.

Howdy and Goedendag! ‘Strong Women, Tough Stories’ in words and song

I just got back from my trip to Europe--biking through Austria, and Slovenia, time in Paris, and an interview about the history of Wild West cowgirls in the Netherlands. Wild West cowgirls continue to amaze and inspire people today, and the Dutch audience was fascinated by their exploits.

Strong Women I: Bandit Queens Followed a Dangerous Road “The truth is that for many years, historians—mostly men—refused to tell it like it was for women of the American West.”

We are just now beginning to learn more about the female outlaws of the Wild West. Belle Starr biographer Michael Wallis explains that, “The truth is that for many years, historians—mostly men—refused to tell it like it was for women of the American West." What we know about three Bandit Queens:

The Fastest Nun in the West 'At just 22 years old, the short-of-stature Sister Blandina stepped straight into the Wild West'

Here's my latest blog on Substack, the story of Sister Blandina who had heard stories about the 'unsavory' cowboys before she headed west and then became 'The Fastest Nun in the West.' One of the comments: "You can't make this stuff up!"

Mountain Charley: Not a man! Discovery made after she emptied her six-shooter into the man who killed her husband

She dressed like a man to support her children and to hunt down the man who killed her husband. Read about the adventures of Mountain Charley: Not a Man!

Nat Love and Deadwood Dick "I've had an unusually adventurous life."

Nat Love's big break came in a Fourth of July "cowboy" contest in Deadwood in 1876. He won pretty much everything, and the crowd dubbed him "Deadwood Dick." The rest is legend.

By Any Other Name Shakespeare or Basano: The resurrection of an erasure 400 years old?

I read a lot. Usually a book or two a week. Among the ones that I keep thinking about is Jodi Picoult's By Any Other Name. She delves into one of the grandest mysteries of all time!
kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/by-any-oth...

Harum-Scarum Dime Novel Cowgirls Characters based on the real lives of daredevil cowgirls

How did women fare in the dime novels of the late 1800s and early 1900s? Cowgirls paved the way for heroines who starred in their own rescues.
kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/those-dari...

Mandy the Mule, a beloved character of old time El Paso 140 years ago trolley cars pulled by mules conveyed passengers across the border

When you could cross the border in a trolley pulled by Mandy the Mule...
kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/mandy-the-...

Cowgirls’ spurs were flashy and complex—just like the cowgirls Museum exhibit and new podcast highlight resilience and independence of early female entertainers and athletes

My latest on Substack: Spurs!
kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/museum-exh...

Wild West Cowgirl: A Western Woman Who Dared Podcast Episode · Inscape Quest Podcast with Trudi Howley · 04/15/2025 · 29m

I was just interviewed by Trudi Howley for her podcast Inscape Quest. We had a great time talking about cowgirls and horses and Wild West shows.
On Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/2MF2...
On Apple podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/w...

Mississippi libraries ordered to delete academic research in response to state laws - Mississippi Today The two research collections state officials ordered for deletion included material from professional journals, conference papers, books, student dissertations, periodicals and newspaper articles.

"The Mississippi Library Commission ordered the deletion of two research collections that might violate state law, a memo obtained by Mississippi Today shows.

"One of the now deleted collections focused on 'race relations' and the other on 'gender studies'...”

mississippitoday.org/2025/04/08/m...

The cost of eggs, then and now In 1900, the Buffalo Bill Wild West used 3,360 eggs--for every breakfast!

That's a lot of eggs!
kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/the-cost-o...

EveryLibrary Condemns the Trump Administration's Termination of IMLS Grants as an Attack on Libraries, Museums, and Archives Everywhere. State Library Agencies and other grant recipients across the country began receiving official notices from the Acting Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services terminating their grants,...

On top of everything else that happened today, libraries across the country began receiving official notices from the Acting Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services terminating their grants, effective April 1, 2025. www.everylibrary.org/trump_termin... via @everylibrary.bsky.social

SEND AN EMAIL: Stop Trump's E.O. Attacking Federal Funding for Libraries We need your help TODAY to tell your governors and key members of the House and Senate that federal funding for libraries - the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) - needs to be preserved!

Trump signed an Executive Order attacking Federal Funding for Libraries. You can email your legislators and governors here: action.everylibrary.org/emaileo2025 via @everylibrary.bsky.social

Major Pauline Cushman: Union Spy The only woman given a commission for secret-service work during the Civil War

Major Pauline Cushman used her acting skills when she became a spy during the Civil War.

Daredevil riders from Ukraine and Russia were crowd favorites The Cossack riders included five women

More amazing cowgirl history.

Statement on Trump's Attack on Federal Funding for Libraries

LIBRARIES! In a new executive order, Trump has targeted the federal agency charged with distributing congressionally approved funds to state libraries and to library, museum, and archives program grant recipients. www.everylibrary.org/statementiml... via @everylibrary.bsky.social

Meet Stagecoach Mary, a real-life character who was larger than life!

What's next? How about cowgirl spies??

I just did a presentation at our local library, and as always when I speak to a group, this question comes up.
kayturnbaugh.substack.com/p/whats-next

Why Simon & Schuster’s Flagship Imprint Won’t Require Blurbs Anymore In a decision some might call “stunning” or a “tour-de-force,” new S&S publisher Sean Manning has decided to no longer require authors to obtain blurbs for their books. Here’s why.

I completely agree with this new policy from S&S not to require blurbs anymore. This piece is an excellent explanation on why. (I never got a single blurb for my book and it still became a bestseller!)

A Toffer in Pants I don't take wearing pants for granted.

This post on women wearing pants, from cowgirls to Kamala Harris, is up on Substack!

What's in a name? Some bronco names live on in history

Just posted a new blog on Substack.