"Market Lass" The Myriad Roles of Elizabeth Poe Part 1
by Maggi Smith-Dalton

In 1797, little Elizabeth Arnold, (future mother of Edgar [Allan] Poe) stood on a stage in Charleston, South Carolina, singing "The Market Lass," a popular song of the day, drawn from the repertory of English pleasure garden and opera house. The child was already a theatrical trouper, apprenticed to the family business.

Her mother and father had acted together on the stage in England. After Elizabeth's father died, her mother, considered a fine singing actress, was hired by Charles Powell, manager of the Federal Street Theatre in Boston. Elizabeth Smith Arnold was approximately 24 years old when she sighted America's shores from the deck of the Outramin January 1796, diminutive Elizabeth in tow.

On April 15, 1796, at the Boston Theatre, nine-year-old Elizabeth Arnold made her American debut.

Her mother remarried, and the family traveled to Portland, Maine, hoping to establish a theater there. Failing, they all joined a troupe which, after engagements in Newport, R.I., and New York, appeared at the Charleston Theatre (1797-1798). Young Elizabeth acted, recited at finale, and danced. Singing, however, appears to be her most consistently-praised talent.

Elizabeth Arnold was orphaned by 1798; after her mother died she was "under the protection of stepfather Charles Tubbs, ... an actress, Miss L'Estrange ... and later Mrs. Usher." She appeared on the Philadelphia stage in March 1799.

From Philadelphia she traveled to Baltimore. Returning to Philadelphia (December 1799) she participated in a monody performed in memory of George Washington, who had just died. The company included such illustrious theatrical talents as Mrs. Oldmixon (English comedienne and singer); Thomas Cooper, who introduced the style of acting known as "grand declamation"; and Thomas Wignell (Washington's favorite performer). Wignell, with partner Alexander Reinagle, built this company into unrivaled prominence in Philadelphia.

As a member of the Philadelphia Company, the young actress participated in the opening of the United States Theatre.

15-year-old Elizabeth Arnold married Charles D. Hopkins, a comedian, in the summer of 1802. They joined Green's Virginia Company. Her singing talents were in as much demand as her acting abilities. Hardworking, in the 1802-03 season she played 21 different parts.

Hopkins died in October 1805. Approximately six months later, between March 14 and April 9, 1806, Elizabeth married fellow actor David Poe, Jr.

Baltimore native David Poe (July 18, 1784-18?) had eschewed the study of law, much to his family's displeasure. He made his stage debut at age nineteen in 1803 at the Charleston Theatre. While Charles was alive, all three had often shared the stage.

After David and Elizabeth's marriage, the two frequently performed together. In 1806, they participated in the Summer Theatre at Vauxhall in New York City. In October of that year, they opened at the Federal Street Theatre, Boston, where they remained for three years.

On January 30, 1807, Eliza gave birth to their first child, William Henry Poe. Elizabeth apparently took only a short time off from acting. Edgar Poe was born on January 19, 1809. Apparently Elizabeth's confinement was again short. At this time, the Poes lived in Boston near the Charles River, south of the Common.

While Mrs. Poe was given leading roles, David seems to have disappeared for a time, though he had been continually employed beforehand. Financial pressures are suspected. In the only known authenticated letter of David Poe's, he pleads for a loan from his cousin, George Poe, and refers to the lack of familial support for his career.

Elizabeth was chosen to play opposite the star John Howard Payne that spring. David returned from his melancholy journey to find Elizabeth advancing in her career. Much struggle and strain! Yet, evidence indicates that the three Boston years were also their happiest: Elizabeth left a sketch of Boston harbor, with a note to her little son, Edgar-- which reads, in part, that Boston was where "his mother found her best, and most sympathetic friends."

In 1809, the Poes traveled to New York and joined the Park Theatre Company for the 1809-10 season.

Elizabeth was again pregnant.

The company, in general, and the Poes, in particular, were not faring well. This excerpt from George C. Odell's Annals of the New York Stage is of interest in understanding this climactic year:

. . . . Poe, as Ireland says, soon sank into insignificance. As a matter of fact, he was withdrawn before the end of the season, but Mrs. Poe became a favourite. . . . As chief singing actress, she naturally enacted Ophelia to Cooper's Hamlet. . . . Some of her specialties--Little Pickle and The Romp--were repeated often enough to warrant a belief in her popularity (Odell 1927, 327-328).

Though Eliza was now the "chief singing actress,""slings and arrows" wounded David, and wounded deeply. On October 18,1809, he appeared for the last time on the stage in the ominously named Grieving's A Folly. His next scheduled performance was canceled at the last moment, due to his (and a fellow actor's) "indisposition."

According to Arthur Quinn, the term was often used "in theatrical notices of that day to cover intoxication. . . . It is likely that the combination of drink, ill health, and unfavorable criticism brought on despair" (Quinn 1941, 37).

After this, David disappears from the record.

Eliza could not, of course, afford to give up too, with two children to support; and with the responsibility of another child on the way. She continued to act, sing, and dance in varied roles. Her last appearance in New York was on July 4, 1810.

Elizabeth left for Virginia shortly after the close of the New York season, appearing at the Richmond Theatre when the season opened in August 1810. After September, however, she does not appear even in the infrequent casts. The most likely reason for her absence is the birth of her third child, Rosalie, on December 20, 1810, in Norfolk (Rosalie was baptized in Richmond in 1812).

The last year of Elizabeth's life, as a member of Placide's Company in Charleston, Norfolk, and Richmond, was sad. She struggled with the Company's poor season, acting sixteen new parts, dancing in "comick" ballets, and singing.

. . . . tho‚ grief may have stolen the roses from her cheeks, she still retains the same sweetness. . . . She this evening hazards a Benefit, in the pleasing hope that the inhabitants of Norfolk will remember past services. . . . (Norfolk Herald, July 26, 1811; quoted in Quinn 1941, 41-42; Smith 1988, 127; and Zimmerman 1986, 138-139).

Elizabeth's last appearance on the stage occurred on October 11th.

In the dying months of 1811, she lay on a bed of suffering in a Richmond boarding house while papers such as the Enquirer ran notices of her condition, pleading for charity for herself and her children. Yet, hardly was she "friendless." Friends did rally; help did come.

The end came in December. Her children, the infant Rosalie and Edgar, were certainly present. Of eldest son William's presence, there are conflicting reports. Most probably, he was in Baltimore with his grandparents.

Buried in winter's gloom, she would lie in an unmarked grave on Church Hill in Richmond's St. John's Churchyard for nearly a century before a memorial would be erected on the site.

Dec.10, 1811--Tuesday. Died, on last Sunday morning [December 8] Mrs.Poe, one of the Actresses of the Company at present playing on the Richmond Boards. By the death of this lady the Stage has been deprived of one of its chief ornaments. And to say the least of her, she was an interesting Actress, and never failed to catch the applause and command the admiration of the beholder (Quinn 1941, 45).

Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins Poe was twenty-four years old.


copyright 1997, 2004 Margaret R. Smith-Dalton
Part II: A look at Eliza's artistry: singer and actress

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Maggie Smith-Dalton is a 20 year performance veteran and American Studies scholar. She, and her husband, Jim Dalton, live in Salem, MA. They teach, lecture, and perform regularly throughout the east coast together. More information about their programs can be found on their website: http://www.singingstring.org

 

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