NELL THE CHAMPION MARKSWOMAN OF THE WORLD. […] The life of Nell reads […] like a romance. She is English-born, her native place being North Shields. Owing to her father being one of the victims of the wreck of the Gipsy Queen on the Tyne, early in the seventies of the last century, she emigrated with her relatives to the North West Frontier of Canada at an early age. [..] In conjunction with [her brother] Joe, when about eleven, they succeeded in defending their home against a night raid of the native red skin Indians. […] It is not to be wondered at that the fame of Nell’s shooting came before Col. W. F. Cody (Buffalo Bill), and when that gentleman brought his Wild West Show to Earl's Court during the Jubilee year of the late Queen Victoria, 1887, Nell Lynch and Annie Oakley astonished all the Metropolis with their remarkable displays of shooting.[1]

The above account of the life and accomplishments of Nell Lynch, trick shooter, taken from a 1903 English newspaper (full version in the appendix) it should surprise few people to learn is largely invention—flim flam for a credulous public enamoured of the romance of the wild west frontier. Quite aside from the questionable tale [on so many levels] of fighting off ‘native red skin Indians’ at age 11, the fact is that the female sharpshooter who performed alongside Annie Oakley on the 1887 Buffalo Bill Wild West Show tour of England was not Nell Lynch but Lillian Smith, a teenage Californian.[2]

Who was Nell Lynch really? The short answer is just one of hundreds, if not thousands, of English music hall artists whose origins were far more prosaic than their bill matter would claim. However, she was also someone with a life story that provides clues as to what drove people in late Victorian England to seek a life on the stage and the opportunities for reinvention that came with it. To reveal the details of that life, we first have to go to the end of it, just seven years after the above account was written.

The death of Mrs. Margaret Ann Lynch, better known as Nell Lynch, removes from the world of variety a famous markswoman. Unfortunately, of late years, her illness, which had a fatal termination Sunday morning last at St. George’s Hospital, prevented her fulfilling engagements; but with her husband, Joe Lynch, the “human target,” she travelled in all parts of the world, and made a big reputation in South America on both sides of the Andes. She commenced her career on the variety stage in her early teens, and was married when little more than seventeen years to the husband who now mourns the loss of a devoted wife.[3]

As can be seen, the story has already changed; most significantly, Joe Lynch is no longer presented as Nell’s brother but her husband. Armed with this information and Nell’s full name, we can trace the pair back to their entry in the 1901 England Census, when they were to be found living in the St George Hanover Square district of London pursuing the occupation of ‘music hall artist’. This also gives us the year of birth for both—about 1870 for Nell and 1865 for Joe. With this new information, the next step back is a surprisingly short one to the marriage of Joseph Thomas Patrick Lynch ‘Artiste’ and Margaret Ann Swallow in December 1900—the pair were not teenage sweethearts after all. The marriage register also tells us that Margaret Ann Swallow was a widow and that her father’s name was Robert Ralph.[4] With these two new facts, we have the information we need to tell the story of the life of Rifle Nell.

(Note added in support of the above: after this piece was written, I discovered that the 1903 newspaper article that supplied the opening quote was an edited version of an article by Stephen Vincent entitled ‘Tall Shooting’ that appeared in the Harmsworth/London Magazine in 1901. In the full Vincent piece, Nell is referred to throughout as ‘Mrs Nell Swallow’, which both supports the identification of Nell Lynch as Margaret Ann Swallow and explains why Joe Lynch is described in the article as her brother: the need to maintain propriety. It is also worth drawing attention to the article’s title, ‘Tall Shooting’, which suggests that Mr Vincent was less than convinced by the tale the Lynchs were telling. In a final curious note: the article includes five photographs of Nell showing her mid-act, none of which show her face.)

THE FEARFUL DISASTER ON THE TYNE. GREAT LOSS OF LIFE. One of the greatest calamities that has ever occurred on the river Tyne took place near the entrance of Howdon Dock at an early hour yesterday morning, and resulted in the drowning of 18 men. […] DROWNED. Robert Ralph, Union Street, North Shields, No. 5 dredger, married, leaves two children […][5]

Margaret Ann Ralph (1869–1910) was born in North Shields, on Tyneside, the eldest of two daughters of dredgerman Robert Ralph (1838–1873) and his wife Mary Ann Ralph née Rennison (1840–1890). Tragedy entered her life early when—and this much of the 1903 account was true—her father, Robert, was drowned in the Gipsy Queen disaster of December 1873, in which a tug carrying dredgermen to work along the Tyne struck a submerged barge and sank, taking 18 men to the bottom of the river with it. Nell was aged just 4, and her sister, Mary, was just 2. Mary Ralph would remarry within two years, but by 1881, she and her daughters were confined to the Tynemouth Union Workhouse.[6] Rather than a life of adventure on the Canadian frontier, Nell Lynch’s adolescence was one of grinding poverty in the North East of England.

In 1886, Nell thought she had found her escape: marriage to James Swan, a seaman. A child was born; however, within two years of the marriage, it had foundered due to James’ violence toward his wife. It was also revealed that James was already married—although he claimed that Nell knew this when they married—and was an army deserter to boot. The fate of the child is unknown; Nell fled the marriage alone. The next time we have definite information about her is two years later, in Hull. However, to tell that part of the story, we first need to go back to December 1887 and take a trip to the circus.[7]

Rowland’s Circus:—To Mr. Leotard Bosco, we are indebted for a remarkably clever series of entertainments at Mr. Rowland's New York Circus, Keeley-road. There are variety shows and variety shows, but that under notice is one of the very best, comprising some of the cleverest things to be seen at the present time. […]. Special mention is deserved by Miami and Texas Charlie, whose rifle shooting is so expert as to be marvellous […][8]

Leotard Bosco was the stage name of James Frederick Greathead (1851–1895). A stage magician and theatrical manager, Bosco would, in time, become the inspiration for conjurer ‘Professor Bosco’, a rare example of a character that Charlie Chaplin played on film that was not his famous tramp. One thing of interest to us here is that, in 1869, Bosco married a ‘Mary Ralph’ of Middlesbrough. Was this a relative of Nell Ralph through her father, Robert? I have been unable to determine this, and it may be that this was simply a remarkable coincidence. Despite Bosco’s indirect connection to Nell’s story, outlined below, I have been unable to determine if there was a direct connection.[9]

By December 1887, Greathead/Bosco was touring England with his ‘Rowland’s New York Circus’, a performing troupe that had been in existence for around a year and a half by the time that Bosco took it over (or took over the name). One of the star turns of this new [look] troupe was the trick shooting act, Texas Charlie and ‘Miami, the Beautiful Western Rifle Queen’.[10]

It is worth taking a step back and remembering that, not coincidentally, 1887 was the year that Buffalo Bill brought both Annie Oakley and Lillian Smith to England with his Wild West Show. The troupe remained in England for more than five months, touring the country after its performances in front of Queen Victoria in London. The sensation that they caused wherever they went was to launch a craze in Britain for American frontier-based entertainment that lasted well into the next century, a story I have detailed elsewhere.[11] Although the famous ‘bullet catching’ trick had been a staple of stage magic acts for over a century by this point,[12] trick shooting really only emerged as a music hall turn after the success of Buffalo Bill  (and the invention of multi-shot firearms, of course). The addition of ‘Texas Charlie’ and ‘Miami’ to the bill of Rowland’s New York Circus as early as December 1887 stands as a remarkably early example of this phenomenon.

The stage name ‘Texas Charlie’ was almost certainly inspired by the story of the death of Charles ‘Texas Charlie’ Wilson, a would-be Western outlaw gunned down during a failed robbery in 1883, a story that was told in the British press in 1885. Alternatively, it may have been inspired by a ‘waltz song with chorus’ of that name published in 1885, which told an unrelated story.[13] The real name of Bosco’s Texas Charlie was Frederick Swallow (1866–1900), a native of Ossett in West Yorkshire. It will be remembered that ‘Swallow’ was Nell Lynch’s surname when she married Joe Lynch in 1900.[14] We can be certain that Fred Swallow was Texas Charlie based on the further evolution of the trick shooting act, as detailed below. However, Nell Lynch was still living with James Swan in Tynemouth in June 1888, six months after ‘Miami’ made her debut in Croydon with Rowland’s Circus. So she was not the original ‘Miami’. However, as I will show below, she would become the second Miami.

As to the origins of the act itself, we can only speculate. It is almost certain that Fred Swallow was already a performer with Leotard Bosco under another stage name when the idea of the act was first proposed (by Fred? Bosco?). Regardless of who proposed the act and whether Nell Ralph was related to Bosco’s wife or not, it is likely that Bosco, given his experience in both theatrical management and stage magic, played a major role in crafting the act and preparing Texas Charlie and Miami for their debut as trick shooters.

Miami, the Champion Lady Rifle Shot, performed several very clever tricks with the rifle, such as shooting a potato out of a man's hand while looking in a small mirror, the gun pointing over her shoulder.[15]

After performing with Rowland’s Circus in 1887, the Texas Charlie and Miami trick shooting act went independent in 1888, beginning a tour of the halls that lasted into the summer of 1889, with Miami and Texas Charlie sharing the billing. However, after this, we see ‘Miami, the Champion Lady Rifle Shot’ with sole billing for the rest of 1889 and all through 1890—Texas Charlie is not mentioned in these 18 months. Then, in late 1891, Texas Charlie reappears, and it is at this time that things become somewhat murky, as, for the next few years, there appear to be two separate ‘Miami’ acts: ‘Miami, Champion Lady Rifle Shot’ and ‘Miami and Texas Charlie, the Western Rifle Experts’ (sometimes just ‘Miami and Charlie, the Western Rifle Experts’). This is seen most clearly in the second week of May 1893, when ‘Miami and Charlie, the Western Rifle Experts’ are continuing a run of appearances in the North East of England, while ‘Miami, Champion Lady Rifle Shot’ is 350 miles to the south in Dover.[16]

(As an aside, by the end of 1891, there was a second ‘Champion Lady Rifle Shot’ touring the halls; this was ‘Winona’, an American trick shooter who would remain active in England for the rest of the decade.[17])

What are we to make of this? Although this must remain speculation, it seems reasonable to suppose that Swallow and the original Miami parted ways in the summer of 1889. Then, in 1890, Swallow and Nell met and married. At this point, Swallow started training Nell to become the second Miami, debuting the new act in the 1891 season despite the original Miami continuing to perform solo. That there were two acts touring the halls with, effectively, the same name would not have been that rare an occurrence, as acts that split up often formed new, competing acts under the same name as their old act. Regardless of the truth of this situation, it ultimately resolved itself in 1895, with the disappearance from the halls of both Miamis and the debut in December of that year of ‘Rifle Nell, understudy of Annie Oakley’.[18]

Critically for our ‘chain of evidence’, for the next couple of years, Fred Swallow retained the ‘Texas Charlie’ stage name while appearing alongside Rifle Nell. By no later than 1896, the pair had added a second act to their repertoire, a knife- and tomahawk-throwing act performed by Texas Charlie—another ‘steal’ from the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show—with Rifle Nell continuing as a trick shooting act. It is worth pointing out that, as early as 1888, while performing as Texas Charlie with the original Miami, Fred Swallow shared the bill with a knife- and tomahawk-throwing act, ‘Raven Plume, the Great Indian Chief’.[19]

At the same time, the trick shooting act’s name continued to evolve, with increasing use of ‘The Swallows’ and ‘Rifle Nell (The Swallows)’ as identifiers. The next big development was the dropping of the ‘Texas Charlie’ stage name in favour of a new tomahawk- and knife-throwing act, ‘Bowie Bill and White Squaw’, again, performed alongside that of the Swallows shooting act. It is worth noting here that, in a reversal of the trick shooting act, in the knife-throwing act, Fred Swallow (Bowie Bill) was the performer and Nell Swallow (White Squaw) the ‘human target’.[20]

It was once the Swallows had perfected their two-act repertoire as both trick shots and knife throwers that they began the two-year residency at the Royal Aquarium in Central London that would later be attributed to the Lynchs. And it was at the Royal Aquarium in early July 1900 that tragedy once more struck the life of Nell Lynch.

While performing on the stage at the Royal Aquarium, London, Fred Swallow, a professional knife and tomahawk thrower, suddenly fell down ill. He was removed to the hospital, where he died. At the inquest on Monday, it was shown that death was due to perforation of the stomach through ulceration.[21]

Fred Swallow’s death, aged just 35, of a perforated ulcer, is a reminder of how much stress that acts as dangerous as trick shooting and knife throwing could cause performers: Fred Swallow was both a human target for Nell in the shooting act and the man throwing knives and tomahawks at Nell in their aptly named ‘impalement act’. The suddenness of his death added shock to Nell’s grief. However, in a reminder that death was ever-present in Victorian England and of the realities of the hand-to-mouth existence of music hall performers, within two weeks of her husband’s passing, Nell Swallow was back on stage.

ROYAL AQUARIUM. Despite the abnormal heat of the past week, the Royal Aquarium has preserved a most cool temperature owing to its construction and ventilation. The additions to the excellent programme made last Monday were much appreciated, especially the masterly mimicry of Mr. George IV. Kenway and the daring shooting of Miss Swallow.[22]

Life moves on. As we have seen, in December of 1900, just five months after the death of Fred Swallow, Nell married Joe Lynch. At this remove, we cannot know the status of the romantic relationship between the Swallows at the time of Fred Swallow’s death: it may have cooled long before, leaving the pair simply professional partners; it may have still blazed hot, and Nell’s quick remarriage may have been simply a measure of the economic and social pressures she was under as a woman out in the world in Victorian England. We cannot know.

TALL SHOOTING. Remarkable Feats of Britain's Champion Markswoman. The lady who has been giving some remarkable exhibitions at the Royal Aquarium, Westminster, lately, is known in private life as Mrs Swallow. Professionally, she is known as " Nell, the champion rifle shot." […] When Nell was but eleven attack was made on their household by Red Indians, and Nell and her brother Joe, who is slightly older than herself, defended the household, and saved the lives of their parents and brothers and sisters.[23]

Whatever the personal circumstances of the Swallows’ marriage, it is remarkable how quickly Fred Swallow was written out of the story of Nell, the sharpshooter, replaced by Joe Lynch. There was a transitional period, during which Nell was identified in the press as ‘Mrs Nell Swallow’ and Joe Lynch as her brother, but even in this version of the story, it was Joe who was with Nell at the start of her career and all the way through it. By 1903, as we have seen, there was no longer even a mention of Nell as once having the surname Swallow; and by 1910, Joe Lynch was being described as having been Nell’s husband for the whole of her adult life. That Nell’s first ‘husband’, the violent and bigamous James Swan, figured nowhere in any of these stories is not to be surprised at.

The Lynchs made their last appearances in the British press as a music hall and circus act in 1905;[24] as subsequent events showed, this was due to the act folding as a result of Nell’s failing health, a symptom of the heart condition that would eventually kill her, aged just 41.

In truth, by the time the Lynch’s retired their act, the public’s attention had already moved elsewhere: 1902 marked the debut of ‘Little Bonita, champion lady rifle shot’, a fresh new face—an asset in the image-conscious world of the circus and music hall—who, by the following year, had elevated her billing to ‘BONITA The World's Champion Girl Rifle and Pistol Shot Assisted by CARLOS, the Human Target’, a direct steal from the Lynchs. Said to have grown up on the prairies of America, Bonita and Carlos were in fact Sylvia Genevra Drescher (1881–1952) and her father, Charles Drescher, of Kingston, Surrey.[25]

A new generation, but an old story.

Jamie Barras, September 2025

Back to Staged Identities

Resources: ‘Tall Shooting’, a 1901 article on Nell Lynch written by Stephen Vincent

Appendix

Shooting Extraordinary. NELL THE CHAMPION MARKSWOMAN OF THE WORLD. Lovers of rifle shooting last week had in the engagement of the Lynchs (Nell, the champion all round rifle shot of the world, and Joe, the human target), at the Hastings Pier Pavilion, the greatest attraction in this line of business ever presented before the inhabitants of Hastings and St. Leonards. The life of Nell reads more like a romance. She is English born, her native place being North Shields. Owing to her father being one of the victims of the wreck of the Gipsy Queen on the Tyne, early in the seventies of last century, she emigrated with her relatives to the North West Frontier of Canada at an early age. In that British Colony Nell's wonderful power as a rifle expert raised the greatest enthusiasm when she was only seven, at which period of her life the marvellous child was giving lessons in this art. In conjunction with Joe, when about eleven, they succeeded in defending their home against a night raid of the native red skin Indians. So daring were her exploits in the affair, that those who took part in the fray declared that the girl who defended her homestead in such a grand fashion must have had supernatural power given her from the lower regions: the remark made was that the girl must be the devil handling the rite; a remark that Nell is not at all entitled to, for, with all the rough life she has gone through, to those who know here there is not a more tender-hearted or sympathetic woman. It is not to be wondered at that the fame of Nell’s shooting came before Col. W. P. Cody (Buffalo Bill), and when that gentleman brought his Wild West Show to Earl's Court during the Jubilee year of the late Queen Victoria, 1887, Nell Lynch and Annie Oakley astonished all the Metropolis with their remarkable displays of shooting. Is it any small wonderment that England would let one of their children of such great ability leave her native soil? So we find her and brother Joe giving their performances at the theatres, the Royal Aquarium, and various circuses. In the course of her brilliant career she has had naturally many adventures. An attack by a bear in India, which Nell, with her wonderful presence of mind, fired at, nearly cost her her life, the fair Queen not being acquainted with the vital part of the animal. The huge brute, raised to fury by the injury had her down in an instant, and she was saved by her brother Joe from destruction by the firing of his well-directed shot. Joes, it might be stated, has served in the British Army as a musketry instructor, R.B. On the outbreak of the recent South African campaign, Joe and Nell volunteered their services, Nell to go out and use the rifle as a protector of the Red Cross Nurses, and Joe in the regulars. The Government, not seeing their way to grant Nell's request, the natural devotion of Joe to Nell eventually put a stop to either of them proceeding to the front. The world is naturally envious of Nell's prowess, especially as she not only challenges, but also achieves, what no other male or female can do throughout the civilised world, namely, to shoot against anyone a hundred shots, shot for shot. range for range, with an ordinary rifle. for any amount not less than £50 a side. She laughs at the commonplace position of an ordinary marksman, such as standing, sitting, kneeling, and lying. Her favourite position is hanging head downwards: then again, she over her shoulder, striking the mark on the head of her human target; swinging head downwards from a trapeze; standing upon a horse going full speed round a hippodrome arena, or whilst mounted on a bicycle, her bullets lodge with accuracy wherever their mistress wishes them to go. Perhaps her most notable shooting triumph over the greatest shots of the globe has been recently in the challenges against all the crack shots of the Argentine Republic. Starting at Buenos Ayres on July 9th of last year, she met and defeated the twelve principal marksmen of that rifle-loving race of South America. Rosario was the field of her next triumph, where met and defeated all comers. From thence she paid an equally successful visit to Monte Video. Travelling on, her unbroken success was continued at Rio de Janeiro, Santos, Bahia, and Pernambuco. At the last-named port, Nell and Joe embarked for Lisbon, a ten days voyage. Here this famous lady markswoman met in a match the greatest Portuguese rifle shot—General Martieun. During the progress of this brilliant shooting contest, the general put down his rifle at the end of the fifteenth shot. He remarked he was more than surprised at such work from a lady, whilst he was perfectly dumbfounded at the various positions she fired from. As for confiding Joe, the human target, if it was not for the accurate and careful aim of Nell, he verily would lead a charmed life. Every week he has fired at him no less than 342 (22 calibre) bullets, each one of which would mean, in inexperienced hands, a bad job for him. But, in Nell's marvellous hands, there is absolutely no danger. It is a true but astonishing fact that Joe has had more bullets fired at him than any soldier in the British Army. To show what a genuine act (The Lynchs) Nell and Joe's wonderful shooting is. It might be mentioned that it has been tested by the Crown, on Nell's shooting and the human target’s being questioned. A deputation from Chatham, consisting of Captain E. M. J. Burn, R.E.: Marksman J. H. Burn-Murdock, Lumsden's Horse; and the Rev. Frederick R. Keightley, attended, and reported as follows: We, the undersigned, having examined the rifles. targets, etc., and having carefully watched the shooting of Nell and Joe Lynch, beg to certify that everything was perfectly genuine." Here followed the above three signatures. In connection with this wonderful exhibition of skill and ability, Nell and Joe wish that their audiences shall form a committee, who shall test the guns, targets, and cartridges. As a proof of the genuineness of this great shooter. It is striking after witnessing such a wonderful shooting turn, that Messrs. John Brill and J. L. Graydon, noted long-headed business men, had not before now engaged them at the Hastings Empire Theatre of Varieties. Nell and Joe, after travelling all over the globe, meeting everywhere with the success due to talent, are, Joe informs us, about to take a starring tour of several months' extent through the United Kingdom. This show, entitled "The Five Champions," bids fair to be the most gigantic show of marvels ever shown as a combination before. consisting, as Joe tells us, of the champion shot, the champion wrestler, the champion strongman, the champion boxer, and the champion dancer of the world, besides nine other brilliant turns. With such an array of talent, and the fact that local contests open to all comers, either professionals or amateurs, will be a feature of the programme, it will be no small wonder if theatres, whether legitimate or variety, circuses or hippodromes, at the cities and large towns they are visiting will not wish them at Jericho. Kruger threatened to stagger humanity a few years ago, with what result our readers are well acquainted. Nell and her brother without making any such boast, accomplish it as every performance. ONE OF THE CROWD. * * * Tunbridge Wells Journal, 11 June 1903

Notes

[1] ‘Shooting Extraordinary: Nell, The Champion Markswoman of the World’, Tunbridge Wells Journal, 11 June 1903.

[2] Julia Bricklin, ‘The Faux “Sioux” Sharpshooter Who Became Annie Oakley’s Rival’, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/faux-sioux-sharpshooter-who-became-annie-oakleys-rival-180963164/, accessed 15 September 2025.

[3] ‘Variety Gossip’, Era, 28 May 1910.

[4] Entry for Joseph Lynch and Margaret Lynch, St George Hanover Square district, 1901 England Census; entry for Joseph Thomas Patrick Lynch and Margaret Ann Swallow, 10 December 1900, Saint Mary at Lambeth Parish Register, Marriages, London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754–1940; ancestry.co.uk, Ancestry.com Inc. Operations, accessed 15 September 2025.

[5] ‘The Fearful Disaster on the Tyne’, Shields Daily Gazette, 27 December 1873.

[6] Years of birth and death of Robert Ralph and Mary Ralph’s maiden name acquired from birth, marriage, and death records, https://www.freebmd.org.uk/search, accessed 15 September 2025. Fate of Ralphs: See Note 5 above, and entry for Margaret Ralph, Tynemouth district, 1881 England Census, ancestry.co.uk, Ancestry.com Inc. Operations. Tynemouth Union Workhouse: https://www.workhouses.org.uk/Tynemouth/, accessed 15 September 2025.

[7] Marriage of Margaret Ann Rennison Ralph to James Gilbert Swan, 11 September 1886: birth, marriage, and death records, https://www.freebmd.org.uk/search and entry for ‘Margaret Ann Renniser Ralph, 11 September 1886, England, Select Marriages, 1538–1973, ancestry.co.uk, Ancestry.com Inc. Operations, accessed 17 September 2025. Breakdown of marriage, presence of child, bigamy of James Swan: ‘Assault Case at North Shields’, Shields Daily News, 12 June 1888. Swan an army deserter: ‘Charges Against a North Shields Fireman’, Shields Daily News, 14 September 1888.

[8] ‘Rowland’s Circus’, Croydon Advertiser and East Surrey Reporter, 31 December 1887.

[9] https://www.greathead.org/greathead2-o/LeotardBosco.htm, https://www.charliechaplin.com/en/films/4-The-Circus/articles/310-Who-was-Professor-Bosco-, accessed 16 September 2025.

[10] For an early mention of Rowland’s New York Circus before Bosco became associated with it, see: ‘Notices: The Pavilion, Bath’, Bath Herald, 4 November 1886.

[11] https://www.ishilearn.com/onthefrontier, accessed 16 September 2025.

[12] https://geniimagazine.com/magicpedia/Bullet_Catch, accessed 16 September 2025.

[13] Charles Wilson: https://stories.grandcountyhistory.org/article/end-texas-charlie, accessed 16 September 2025. In the British press: ‘Wild Will’, Hull Daily News, 9 September 1885. Texas Charlie waltz song: https://levysheetmusic.mse.jhu.edu/collection/139/003, accessed 16 September 2025.

[14] Year and place of Fred Swallow’s birth: entry for Frederick Swallow and Margaret Swallow, ‘actor’ and ‘actress’, Sculcoates district, 1891 England Census. Marriage of Frederick Swallow and Margaret Ralph, 10 March 1890, England, Select Marriages, 1538–1973, ancestry.co.uk, Ancestry.com Inc. Operations, accessed 15 September 2025.

[15] ‘Bank Holiday Fete at Newark’, Newark Herald, 15 June 1889.

[16] Miami and Texas Charlie, 1888 Season: ‘Amusements: Powell and Clarke’s Great Wild West Show’, Cork Daily Herald, 7 June 1888. Last appearance together, 1889 Season: See Note 15 above. Miami, Champion Lady Rifle Shot alone: ‘Croydon: Theatre Royal, Era, 1 March 1890. Texas Charlie reappears: ‘Advertisements & Notices: Circus Artistes’ Wants’, Era, 10 October 1891. Two acts? ‘Miami and Charlie: ‘Public Notices: Shotley Spa Grounds’, Consett Guardian, 12 May 1893; ‘Miami, Champion Lady Rifle Shot’: ‘Dover: Royal Clarence Theatre of Varieties’, Era, 13 May 1893.

[17] Winona, Champion Lady Rifle Shot from the US: ‘Advertisements & Notices’, Era, 31 October 1891. Still touring the halls 1899: ‘Amusements: Manchester, the Palace’, Music Hall and Theatre Review, 30 June 1899.

[18]  ‘Rifle Nell’: ‘World’s Fair at Cardiff’, South Wales Weekly Argus and Monmouth Advertiser, 28 December 1895.

[19] Rifle Nell and Texas Charlie, and Texas Charlie, tomahawk and knife thrower: ‘Advertisements & Notices: Circus Artistes’ Wants’, Era, 11 January 1896. Raven Plume: See Note 16, first reference.

[20] The Swallows: ‘Advertisements & Notices: Circus Artistes’ Wants’, Era, 3 September 1898. Rifle Nell (The Swallows): ‘Advertisements & Notices: Circus Artistes’ Wants’, Era, 21 October 1899. Bowie Bill and White Squaw: ‘Royal Aquarium’, Music Hall and Theatre Review, 5 January 1900. Bowie Bill and Rifle Nell together: ‘Advertisements & Notices: Circus Artistes’ Wants’, Era, 15 January 1898.

[21] ‘Chips of News’, Banbury Advertiser, 12 July 1900.

[22] ‘Drama, Music, Art: Royal Aquarium’, Reynold’s Newspaper, 22 July 1900.

[23] ‘Tall Shooting’, Dundee Evening Post, 18 March 1901.

[24] ‘Nell & Joe Lynch, the world’s greatest sharpshooters’: ‘Central Palace of Varieties’, Shields Daily News, 15 May 1905.

[25] Little Bonita: ‘Notices: Gilbert’s Circus’, Exeter and Plymouth Gazette, 14 October 1902. Bonita and Carlos: ‘Advertisements and Notices’, Music Hall and Theatre Review,  May 1903. Bonita Drescher’s life story: ‘Little Bonita’, Cannock Advertiser, 1 March 1952, 8 March 1952, and 19 April 1952.