Historic Canton Church Presents: Mary Bradford
 | Author:
Victor Sample, Canton Church
Vic Sample: MT43 News Treasurer |
Historic Canton Church Presents: Mary Bradford
Victor Sample
Canton Church
The Historic Canton Church will continue our Summer Schedule of Events on July 14 at 5:00 pm with Mary Bradford. As always events are free – although we do accept donations!
Mary Bradford is a talented historical interpreter and scholar who brings history to life for audiences of all ages. She is an artist in residence for the C. M. Russel Museum in Great Falls and the Montana Historical Society in Helena.
Join us at the Canton Church as Mary brings Calamity Jane to life.
The name Calamity Jane brings to mind an iconic character of the American West. Accounts of Calamity—whose real name was Martha Canary—are legend and she has achieved mythical status in the lore of the frontier. She lived and traveled throughout Wyoming, Montana, and the Dakotas from 1867 to 1903, during some of the West’s wildest days. The voracious Victorian press sensationalized her activities, and as a flamboyant character in popular dime novels, Calamity Jane’s legend grew until the person behind the character all but disappeared.
Who better to give us insights about the real story than Madam Dora DuFran, a Black Hills pioneer, entrepreneur and close friend of Calamity’s. Ms. DuFran built a successful red light business during the rambunctious early days of the western frontier in Deadwood, South Dakota, and has a unique perspective about how wild it really was. Ms. DuFran knows better than anyone the life of Martha Canary and Calamity Jane, two quite different women, one legendary, one all but forgotten.
The Historic Canton Church was built in 1875-1876 and is one of the few surviving buildings from the town of Canton which was flooded during the creation of Canyon Ferry Lake. All our events begin at 5:00 pm but the Canton Church will be open to visitors from 3:00-5:00 pm before events.
Visit our website at WWW.Canton-Church.org for more information about our events and about the Historic Canton Church and the Town of Canton.
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PhotoCredit: Photo Credits: Mary Bradford
Image 1 Caption: Mary Bradford
Photo Credits: Mary Bradford
