Reignolds, Kate

(1836-1911)

   Born Catherine Mary Reignolds near London, England, she came in 1850 with her mother and sisters to Chicago, where they performed under the management of John B. Rice. As Kate Reignolds, she made her New York debut opposite Edwin Forrest in 1855. Among the companies with which she subsequently performed were those of Laura Keene, John Brougham, Benedict De Bar, and Charlotte Cushman, all of whom are described in her 1887 memoir Yesterdays with Actors. Her five years with the Boston Museum stock company included a stint playing opposite John Wilkes Booth, whom she regarded as "an irresponsible person, . . . this sad-faced, handsome, passionate boy" (1887, 140). During the modernist period, she devoted herself largely to dramatic readings and giving elocution lessons.