First Appearance: Captain America Comics #1 (March, 1941).
Golden Age Appearances: Captain America Comics #1-75 (as Golden Girl, #66-69), Marvel Mystery Comics #88.
Modern Appearances: Captain America #285 (possibly referred to).
Years Active: 1941-?

Betsy Ross is a WAC and a secret agent working for the FBI in 1941. She's also friends with Steve Rogers and Bucky Buchanan, aka Captain America (I) and Bucky (I), during the early years of the war, helps the pair with various cases, and is romantically involved with Steve Rogers. She does not, however, know that Steve is Captain America. In 1945, when Captain America (I) disappears and is replaced by Captain America (II), Betsy Ross is similarly unaware of the civilian identity of Captain America (II), the replacement for Captain America (I). It can be assumed that Betsy Ross worked with (II) as she had worked with (I).

In 1948 Bucky (II) is shot in action, leaving Captain America (III) ((II) died in action in 1946) without a partner. (III) chooses Betsy Ross to be Bucky (II)'s replacement. Captain America (II) trains Betsy and gives her a yellow costume, which she wears, calling herself the "Golden Girl." At this time she learns the civilian identity of Captain America. (In Captain America Comics #66 she learned that Steve Rogers was Captain America; presumably in the revised Marvel continuity she learned that Jeffrey Mace was Captain America (III).) She helped Cap (III) on various cases, and even teamed up, sans Cap, with Namora and Sun Girl on one case.

In the modern era it was revealed that it was Captain America (III) who Betsy teamed up with after Bucky (II) was shot, and that this took place in 1949, not 1948. It was also revealed that Betsy Ross married Jeffrey Mace, so that we may assume that when he retired in 1950, so did she.

The Golden Girl (I) had no superpowers but was athletic and good in a fight.

Note: The Golden Girl (I)'s presence in modern Marvel continuity rests primarily upon a reference, in Captain America #285, to the "Golden Girl." This is a problem, because Marvel has published stories involving two Golden Girls; the first, Betsy Ross, and the second, Gwenny Lou Sabuki. Captain America #285 only refers to the "Golden Girl," rather than specifying which one it might be. However, OHOTMU Update #5 states that the Patriot, who later became Captain America (III), was the partner of the Betsy Ross Golden Girl. Now, Marvel calls Gwenny Lou Sabuki the first Golden Girl, as she was active in Marvel's diegetical continuity before Betsy Ross was active as the Golden Girl. However, Betsy Ross appeared historically long before Gwenny Lou Sabuki did, so for the purposes of this page Betsy Ross is Golden Girl (II) and Gwenny Lou Sabuki is Golden Girl (II).