Photograph of Charlotte Cushman (seated) and her partner Matilda Hays (standing). Date unknown. Please click on the image to visit its source.
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Charlotte Cushman was one of the most famous 19th-Century American actresses. Cushman is also a well-known figure in LGBTQ+ history. Cushman was a dramatic and Shakespearean actress, known for her versatility. She notably played the roles of both major female and male characters, including playing Hamlet and Romeo. Cushman was a patron of the arts, and used her success in the theater to support other female artists in Boston and abroad, including several of her lovers. At a time when her sexuality was not widely accepted in America, Cushman was public about her relationships with other women. Although Cushman was not a member of King's Chapel, her widely attended funeral was held at the church on February 21, 1876. She died next door at the Omni Parker House of pneumonia she contracted while battling breast cancer. The students and faculty from a girls' school named for Cushman attended the funeral, sitting in specially-reserved seats. The students wore all white with black sashes and participated in placing special bouquets on Cushman's casket. Charlotte Cushman is buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
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