The Active Historian

Elba Mae Ghent was born on September 8, 1885 in Nora, Illinois. She was raised on a ranch by her mother and had a deep appreciation for them.

In 1901, she attended a performance by Pawnee Bill’s Wild West Show in Wisconsin. She saw her favorite athlete, Lulu Bell Parr ride. Before the show left town, she had signed on to travel with them.

She was a talented sharpshooter and trick rider who performed in various vaudeville and Wild West shows. She had learned many of these talents on the ranch she grew up on in Wisconsin. She taught herself how to trick ride after watching the Wild West shows that stopped through town.

“It’s a great game, so fascinating that I suppose we will all live and die in it.”

-Mamie Francis (“‘Back of the Scenes’ Girl Rodeo Riders Are ‘Just Folks;’ Babies, Thanksgiving Dinners, Subjects.” Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, TX), November 26, 1920.)

On July 7, 1901, she married fellow Pawnee Bill’s Wild West show performer, Herbert Skepper. Judge Richardson of Little Falls, Minnesota performed the ceremony. Mamie and Herbert had a daughter, Reine on October 9, 1902 in Janesville, Wisconsin. By 1905, the couple had divorced.

Mamie joined Hafley’s Wild West Show shortly after. Charles “California Frank” Hafley and his wife, Lilian Smith knew Mamie was talented and wanted her to join their show. Lilian Smith was a talented sharpshooter herself.

Soon, Mamie became known for daredevil tricks with her beloved Arabian horses, Lurlene and Serpentia. She and the horse would stand at the edge of a forty- to fifty-foot platform over a pool of water. That pool was only about ten feet across which left little room for any kind of error… She and the horse would dive off the edge of the platform, landing in the water below. Mamie and her horse performed this act over 620 times from 1908-1917. California Frank could also perform the horse diving act when Mamie was injured.

“Of course, you, will understand that I do not dive my horses for pleasure,” said she yesterday with engaging frankness. “You must know that there are means of recreation far less exciting and infinitely more beneficial than jumping horseback 40 feet into a tank of water; but there is no profession for which I am fitted that will bring me the large returns I receive for this act. After while, I will be able to retire and live on my ranch without bothering over money matters. Until then I must take the chance of accident involved in the high dive on horseback… Withal, it is foolish for people to feel that a man or woman who is doing an act of daring in a Hippodrome or circus is jeopardizing his or her life with no end in view – with no permanent good to humanity. I maintain that every act of daring performed in public contributes something to the sum of human courage. The force of example is all-powerful and while I may not induce any man or woman to emulate me in diving on horseback, I still have the consciousness, indeed, I may say the self-satisfaction, of feeling that everything time I make my perilous descent someone has been impressed and imbued with greater bravery and a more courageous spirit.”

-Mamie Francis (“Hippodrome Continues Wild West.” The Morning Herald (Uniontown, PA), July 21, 1910.)

Mamie perfected and picked up some other tricks during her time with Hafley’s Wild West Show. She would go on to become the “world’s greatest rifle shot in exhibition shooting from horseback” and could break two to three glass balls thrown into the air at the same time.

California Frank and Lilian Smith eventually filed for divorce. In November 1909, Mamie and Frank tied the knot. Frank also adopted Mamie’s daughter, Reine.

In 1910, Mamie, Frank, Reine, and other show performers were living in Knoxville, Tennessee according to the 1910 United States Federal Census. Reine began performing alongside side Mamie and California Frank in the Wild West shows. In 1918, the Hafleys purchased a ranch in Ouray County, Colorado to return home to during the off-season.

Pictured below from left to right are Tad Barnes Lucas, Mamie Francis, and Reine Hafley at an event.

Pictured below are Mamie Francis and Ruth Roach with Tris Speaker.

In 1922, Mamie Francis and her horse, Napoleon participated in the 19th annual banquet of the Genesee County Agricultural Society. She placed rubber shoes on Napoleon’s hooves and rode him into the banquet hall of the Hotel Richmond. They then proceeded to perform a series of tricks for the banquet guests on the polished floors.

Mamie stopped horse diving in the mid- to late-1910s and chose to focus on her other talents. She was one of the best sharpshooters and trick riders in the country.

Frank passed away in 1940, and Mamie chose to sell the ranch in Ouray County, Colorado. She packed her bags and moved to her daughter, Reine’s farm in Fort Worth, Texas.

Mamie Francis Hafley passed away on February 15, 1950 at the age of 64. She is buried at the Shannon Rose Hill Memorial Park in Fort Worth, Texas.

In 1981, she was inducted into the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.

National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame

You can see the following photos of Mamie Francis on exhibition at the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame in Fort Worth, Texas.

Concluding Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed learning about the life of Mamie Francis and will join me next time as we continue uncovering more stories from the American West!

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Sources

Secondary Sources

Books

Chris Enss. “Along Came A Cowgirl: Daring and Iconic Women of the Rodeo & Wild West Shows.” [Pages: 116-117]

Richard Rattenbury. “Arena Legacy: The Heritage of American Rodeo.” [Pages: 246-247]

Websites

“Mamie Francis Hafley.” National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.

Chris Enss. “Along Came Cowgirl Mamie Francis.” Chris Enss website blog post.

“Mamie Frances Ghent Hafley.” Find A Grave.

Primary Sources

“Mamie Francis Hafley.” Texas Department of Health. Texas Death Indexes, 1903-2000. Austin, TX, USA: Texas Department of Health, State Vital Statistics Unit. (Certificate: 7027)

“Mamie F Hafley.” City Directory, Fort Worth, Texas, 1949. (Page 458)

“Elba Renie Skepper.” & “Elba Ghent.” “Wisconsin Births and Christenings.” Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2009, 2010. Index entries derived from digital copies of original and compiled records. (FHL Film Number: 1305582)

Census Records

“Ella M Halfley.” 1910 United States Federal Census. 1910; Knoxville Ward 7, Knox, Tennessee; Roll: T624_1507; Page: 34a; Enumeration District: 0088; FHL microfilm: 1375520.

“Mammie F Hafley.” 1920 United States Federal Census. 1920; Lower Dallas, Ouray, Colorado; Roll: T625_169; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 135.

“Mamie F Hafley.” 1930 United States Federal Census. 1930; Ridgway, Ouray, Colorado; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 0007; FHL microfilm: 2339981.

Marriage Licenses

“Alba Ghent.” Minnesota Association of County Officers; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Official Marriage System. (Certificate Number: G-24)

Newspapers

“Married.” Little Falls Herald (Little Falls, MN), July 12, 1901.

“Marriage Licenses, 1901.” Little Falls Herald (Little Falls, MN), January 3, 1902.

“Girl Diver Hurt On King’s Highway.” The Omaha Daily News (Omaha, NE), September 24, 1908.

“Alabama State Fair.” The Birmingham News (Birmingham, AL), October 4, 1909.

“The Horseback Dive.” The Birmingham News (Birmingham, AL), October 12, 1909.

“With Ideal Weather Gates of Great State Fair Thrown Open To Public.” Birmingham Post-Herald (Birmingham, AL), October 12, 1909.

“Two Big Features…” The Pittsburgh Post (Pittsburgh, PA), June 26, 1910.

“Amusements.” The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA), July 3, 1910.

“Hippodrome Continues Wild West.” The Morning Herald (Uniontown, PA), July 21, 1910.

“Miss Francis In Great Score.” The Times (Streator, IL), August 5, 1919.

“Program As Arranged For The Four Days Of Fair And Stock Show.” The Daily Sentinel (Grand Junction, CO), September 13, 1919.

“‘Back of the Scenes’ Girl Rodeo Riders Are ‘Just Folks;’ Babies, Thanksgiving Dinners, Subjects.” Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, TX), November 26, 1920.

“World’s Most Famous Riders and Ropers Winter in Fort Worth.” Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas), January 23, 1921.

“Sporting Section.” Boston Post (Boston, Massachusetts), March 13, 1921. (Page 19)

“Be There To-Day!” The Toronto Star (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), November 22, 1922.

“Circus Horse Does Tricks At Dinner.” The Buffalo News (Buffalo, New York), December 14, 1922.

“Weekly Pictorial News.” Corsicana Daily Sun (Corsicana, Texas), November 28, 1923.

“Eagle Classified.” Lancaster Eagle-Gazette (Lancaster, Ohio), August 26, 1933.

“Craterville Rodeo Dates Announced.” Binger Journal (Binger, Oklahoma), June 23, 1938.

“Craterville Plans Rodeo.” The Mangnum Daily Star (Mangnum, Oklahoma), June 28, 1938.

The Burwell Tribune (Burrell, Nebraska), July 7, 1938. (Page 1)

“Scenes From Corsicana’s Spectacular Fair Inaugural Parade.” Corsicana Daily Sun (Corsicana, Texas), October 6, 1938.

*All newspaper clippings in this blog post were pulled from newspapers.com. All digitized primary sources were accessed on ancestry.com. I am not affiliated with either website. I just wanted to let you know where I found my digitized sources.

*Blog Cover Photo: “The Horseback Dive.” The Birmingham News (Birmingham, AL), October 12, 1909.