Bob Walter was born as Baptistine Dupré in 1853 in Toulouse, France (some sources also mention 1856 in Blidah, Algeria, which was French at the time). She was raised in Paris, but not much is known about her during this period. She earned some fame in the early 1890s when she created and performed a line of pantomimes and luminous dances in several Parisian theaters.

Next she appeared as a lion tamer in the Gaité Theatre and her star soon rose quickly. Soon thereafter she turned in a totally different direction: she became the first woman to open a garage in Paris at No.83 Avenue de la Grande Armée, which was the center of the French automobile scene, and began dealing in automobiles. She also turned this into a successful venture. (theoldmotor.com)