Not much is known about Newspaper Annie or her life, except that she was a female
newsie who sold near the Brooklyn Bridge. We know there were other female newsies,
more than the authorities would have liked to admit,
because the five newsboy lodging houses and the newsgirl lodging houses have
been written about. These female newsies were probably prompted to sell papers for
the same reasons as their male counterparts: coming from a poor family, being an
orphan or runaway, or just wanting to be independant and make a living on their own.
The fictional Annie is small, but tough despite her size. Her auburn hair and green
eyes show her Irish heritage. (She has a temper to match!) She comes from a middle
class family, but to avoid an arranged marriage, and to remain independant, she took
a job as a newsie. She's friends with most of the newsboys, and they think of her as
part of the family.
