The Story Behind Prospector Ranch’s Airstream
~ Natalia Radcliffe ~ Did you know our Airstream was named after a true female pioneer?
Meggan dubbed the vintage 1972 Ambassador Airstream “Fearless Mary”, after the female African American pioneer Mary Fields, also known as “Stagecoach Mary”.
Picture of a book we have on Mary Fields in our Airstream!
Meggan wanted to keep a 1800s theme to the ranch, so she was on the lookout for names having to do with that era. She found a documentary on Mary Fields, and became fascinated on learning more about the woman. As soon as she found the name “Fearless Mary” Meggan knew it was perfect for the Airstream.
“Fearless Mary” was Mary Fields's nickname, and it fit her well. She was a strong, kind-hearted, courageous woman, who stood around 6 feet tall and had a bald eagle as her best friend.
Born in the early 1830s, she lived in slavery until the end of the Civil War. After her freedom, she spent some time as a housekeeper with the Ursuline Convent in Ohio. She became close with one of the nuns, Mother Amadeus. When the nun moved to the St. Peter’s Mission outside Cascade, Montana, Fields eventually moved to Montana as well. Some accounts say the reason Fields moved there was because Mother Amadeus was gravely ill and wanted Fields to help take care of her. Interestingly, Montana is where Meggan and her husband love spending time as they have another Airbnb in Missoula as well.
During her time at St. Peter's Mission, some sources describe Fields as not only doing housework, but also doing physically laborious jobs, something men would typically do. According to some sources, after rumors went around that she was involved in a duel, she was banned from St. Peter’s Mission.
Mary Fields. Photographer unknown. Picture obtained from https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20044630
While living in Montana, Mary tried but failed to open one or more eateries. They said to have failed due to her giving nature of allowing folks who could not pay to eat for free.
In 1895, Mary was the first African American to carry mail on a Star Route Carrier for the United States Postal Service. She won the contract when she hitched a team of horses to a postal coach faster than all the other male applicants. She was in her 60s. Fields was not only the first African American but also the second woman in US history to receive this contract. She did the job faithfully for 8 years, never missing a day of work, braving all kinds of weather, bandits, and wolves, thus the name “Stagecoach Mary”.
After her job with the postal express, she opened up a laundry business that she ran until her death in 1914. She was buried in Cascade, Montana. After her death, the townspeople raised money to have her buried in a cemetery on a road she drove frequently that linked Cascade to the mission. Mary’s funeral was said to be one of the largest in town.
In addition to being linked to Mary Fields, the name “Fearless Mary” also reminds Meggan of her friend Mary Akpovi. Mary, who was originally from Nigeria, introduced Meggan to the charity Mercy Childcare, an orphanage in Uganda that Meggan and Chris help support. A portion of the money Meggan makes from Prospector Ranch goes to this charity, which she visits as often as she can.
The name for our Airstream was truly meant to be.
St. Patrick’s Day is next week! Join us for some bits of history behind the holiday.
Information obtained from
