Olive Oatman’s Tattoos
Olive Ann Oatman was 13 years old when she and her family were traveling from Illinois to California with a company of Mormon Brewsterites and were attacked by a group of Native Americans. Most of her family were either murdered or left for dead while she and her sister were made slaves. They lived with the Yavapai Indians for a year before being traded to the Mohave, who tattooed her face.
She grew accustomed to her new way of life, but at the age of 19, she was repatriated back to American society. It didn’t take long for Olivia to become famous as her story was retold time and time again. The blue tattooing of her face was somewhat of an oddity in 1860s America.