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Edwin Booth papers

 Collection
Identifier: D.129

Biographical/Historical note

Edwin Booth (1833-1893) was the son of Junius Brutus Booth (1796-1852), an English actor who emigrated to the United States in 1821. Edwin was born on the Booth farm near BelAir Maryland. He was educated in the local private schools and also accompanied his father on theatrical tours from the age of thirteen.



He made his theatrical debut in 1849 in Boston in a small part in Richard III, and in the two years following played juvenile parts in his father's productions. He accompanied his father to California in July 1852, where they acted in San Francisco and Sacramento under the Management of Junius Brutus Booth Jr. The elder J.B. Booth started to return to Maryland, but died on the way. Edwin Booth stayed in the west and toured the mining towns and acted in his brother's company in San Francisco. He stayed in California until 1856, interrupted by a tour of Australia in 1854. After he returned east, he toured the south, acted in Boston and New York, and toured again in the west and south.



Edwin Booth married Mary Devlin in 1860. In 1861 they sailed to England, where he appeared in London, Liverpool and Manchester in rather unsuccessful engagements. Their daughter, Edwnia was born on December 9, 1861.



They returned to New York where Booth acted at the Winter Garden until his wife's sudden death in February 1863. He temporarily retired from the stage, returning to undertake the management of the Winter Garden in September 1863. Booth's management of the Winter Garden was interrupted by his brother's assassination of Lincoln in April 1865. He returned to it in January 1866, but the theatre burned in March 1867. To replace the Winter Garden he built Booth's theatre in New York, which opened February 3, 1869. The financial panic of 1873-74 forced him to withdraw in 1873 and in 1874 he became bankrupt. For the rest of his career he toured the United States, the British Isles and Europe without having a permanent theatre home.



In June 1869, he married his leading lady, Mary McVicker. She retired from the stage and delivered their son, Edgar who died soon afterwards on July 3, 1870. Mary McVickar contracted tuberculosis and died insane in 1881. Booth's final performance was in Hamlet, April 4, 1891 in Brooklyn. He died June 7, 1893.



Biographical information:

- Dictionary of American Biography

- Ruggles, Eleanor. Prince of Players.

- Lockridge, Richard. Darling of Misfortune; Edwin Booth: 1833-1893.

- Kimmel, Stanley. The Mad Booths of Maryland.

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of 54 letters written by Edwin Booth to John E. Russell during the years 1864 to 1881, concerning acting, theatre critics, Booth's theatre and family and social matters. John Russell was a theatre critic and journalist, who appears to have written for the New York Sun as well as other papers. He lived in Leicester, Massachusetts, but appears to have been in New Orleans in 1870. A 1907 envelope bearing Russell's brief notes on Booth's letters (concerning details of location and dates) appears to have been originally used to store the correspondence.

Creator

Dates

  • Creation: 1864-1881, 1907

Language of Materials

English

Extent

1 box(es)

Access

The Edwin Booth Papers is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Rare Books Special Collections & Preservation Department prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.

Use

In consultation with a curator, reproductions may be made upon request. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from a curator. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchased from Paul C. Richards, May 22, 1979.

Preferred Citation

[Item title, item date], Edwin Booth Papers, D.129, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester

Existence and Location of Copies

See: Edwin Booth Collection for digital collection of Booth's correspondence to John Russell.

Title
Edwin Booth papers
Author
Finding aid prepared by Rare Books and Special Collections staff
Date
undated
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • April 2022: Finding aid updated to include two items previously missing from the inventory: the Sept. 19, 1869 letter, and the 1907 envelope with Russell's notes.

Library Details

Part of the Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation Library

Contact:
Rochester NY 14627-0055 USA