Good morning beautiful humans, Happy Tuesday! Thank you for spending part of your morning with me. Welcome to Life with Lane!

Since it’s February, which is one of my favorite months, Black History Month, I am dedicating every Tuesday to our unsung heroes. Last week I highlighted the heroic Ruby Bridges. This week my focus in on Mary “Stagecoach” Fields.

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Mary was the first African-American woman employed as a mail carrier in the United States. She was the second woman to work for the United States Postal Service. She was born in Hickman County, Tennessee, in 1832, and she was born into slavery. Mary was freed when slavery was outlawed in 1865.

Mary became a mail carrier at the age of 60. Out of all the applicants to apply, she was the fastest applicant to hitch a set of six horses. She had a horse named Moses and she used him for all of her routes. She was the kind of employee owners dreamed of. She never missed a day of work and her excellence and consistency earned her the nickname “Stagecoach”.

When the weather was bad and she couldn’t take her horses out, she would put on her snowshoes and walk it out. She would carry the mail sacks on her shoulders. This is where her height and weight really came to her advantage. Being built like an ox as a woman finally had its perks

Mary Fields was a true role model and well respected in her town. Each year on her birthday, the town would close the schools and celebrate. In Montana women were outlawed to enter saloons in Cascade, the mayor granted an exemption for Ms. Fields. In 1914 Mary passed away to liver failure. She was indeed one of the original divas and a true hero!

Thank you for reading my blog and I hope you enjoyed it and maybe even learned something. I admire Mary Fields because I can’t even imagine how it was to live during that time as an African American and a woman! Have a wonderful blessed day!