A Kansas girl ran off to join the circus and changed the tattoo world

One of the country's first known female tattoo artists was born on a Kansas farm. Maud Stevens Wagner ran off to join the circus and later became a tattoo legend.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/1184x1760+0+0/resize/1184x1760!/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F78%2F6e%2Fd31e3881487ab9228b2f466cce6f%2F20260908-maudstevenswagner-00002.JPG' alt='A 1907 photo made in Los Angeles, Calif., shows the constellation of tattoos on Maud Wagner's chest, shoulders and arms. The photograph is among the most downloaded tattoo-related image in the Library of Congress.'/><p>One of the country's first known female tattoo artists was born on a Kansas farm. Maud Stevens Wagner ran off to join the circus and later became a tattoo legend.</p><p>(Image credit: Library Of Congress Prints And Photographs Division)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-5955615' />