Alice Chapin or Alice Ferris (August 28, 1857 – July 5, 1934) was an American actress, playwright and

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

active in England. She returned to America and played roles in silent films.

Life

Chapin was born in Keene, New Hampshire to Ephraim Atlas Chapin, who had interests in the railroad, and to Josephine, née Clark. Alice had an elder brother Alfred, who was elected as a Democrat to the

52nd United States Congress The 52nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1891, ...

. After 1868, she moved to Brooklyn, where she was successful in amateur dramatics, and her brother became a successful politician and lawyer. She made an unsuccessful marriage with a realtor, and her name was briefly Ellis until she obtained a divorce in June 1888. She had a son,

Harold Chapin Harold Chapin (15 February 1886 – 26 September 1915) was an American-born English actor and playwright. He served in the British Army during World War I. Life Chapin was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1886. His mother was Alice Chapin an actr ...

, and she moved to England taking with her a large inheritance from her mother. In England, she had a daughter, Elsie Chapin.Maggie B. Gale, 'Chapin, Harold (1886–1915)', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, Sept 201
accessed 9 Nov 2017
/ref> In London, her life involved professional acting. She appeared in important productions, including one ''The Websters'', with her son Harold and his wife-to-be Calypso Valetta, at the Royalty Theatre. On a political basis, she was an active member of the

Actresses' Franchise League The Actresses' Franchise League was a women's suffrage organisation, mainly active in England. Founding In 1908 the Actresses' Franchise League was founded by Gertrude Elliott, Adeline Bourne, Winifred Mayo and Sime Seruya at a meeting in ...

. The league included many notable actresses among its members, and with their help, the League produced suffrage plays. Chapin wrote and adapted some of the plays. Chapin was also a militant suffragette within the Women's Freedom League, and she was sentenced to jail in 1911. She and Alison Neilans splashed chemicals over the ballot papers in the

1909 Bermondsey by-election The 1909 Bermondsey by-election was a by-election held on 28 October 1909 for the British House of Commons United Kingdom constituencies, constituency of Bermondsey (UK Parliament constituency), Bermondsey in South East London. It returned one Mem ...

. The protest was intended to highlight that the prime minister had refused to see a deputation. Chapin was successful in damaging many ballot papers, and Neilans damaged a few. All of the ballot papers were still readable and John Dumphreys was elected. However, presiding officer George Thorley had the chemicals splashed in his eye. At their trials the doctors said that Thorley may have a haze over his eyes for life. The suffragettes believed that Thorley had exaggerated his injury and that the damage was due to his applying ammonia after the incident in an attempt to alleviate any damage. Chapin and Neilans were tried at the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

, and Neilans later published an account of their defence. Chapin was given a larger sentence than Neilans, but she was released two days after her under the "King's Pardon". Meanwhile, her son Harold was following an acting career as well as writing and staging plays in London. He joined the Royal Army Medical Corps despite being an American. He was wounded and killed while volunteering at the Battle of Loos in 1915. The loss of his talent was compared to the death of

Rupert Brooke Rupert Chawner Brooke (3 August 1887 – 23 April 1915)The date of Brooke's death and burial under the Julian calendar that applied in Greece at the time was 10 April. The Julian calendar was 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar. was an En ...

. Alice appeared with Gerald du Maurier, Sydney Fairbrother, and Calypso Valetta in a memorial presentation of four of his plays. One of the plays, ''The Philosopher of Butterbiggens'', was recreated in Provincetown, Massachusetts, with Elsie Chapin as the director. Alice Chapin returned to the U.S., and by 1917, she appeared in silent films. Chapin died in Keene, New Hampshire in 1934.

Plays

* ''Shame'' (with E.H.C. Oliphant 1892) * ''The Wrong Legs'' (1896) * ''A Knight Errant'' (1906) * ''The Happy Medium'' (with P. Gaye, 1909) * ''Outlawed'' (Court, 1911) a dramatisation, with Mabel Collins, of the novel by Collins and Women's Freedom League leader Charlotte Despard

Partial filmography

* '' Thais'' (1917) * '' The Spreading Dawn'' (1917) * '' By Hook or Crook'' (1918) * '' Anne of Little Smoky'' (1921) * '' Icebound'' (1924) * ''

Daughters of the Night A daughter is a female offspring; a girl or a woman in relation to her parents. Daughterhood is the state of being someone's daughter. The male counterpart is a son. Analogously the name is used in several areas to show relations between ...

'' (1924) * '' Manhattan'' (1924) * '' Argentine Love'' (1924) * '' Youth for Sale'' (1924) * ''

The Crowded Hour ''The Crowded Hour'' is a 1925 American silent film, silent drama film directed by E. Mason Hopper and starring Bebe Daniels. It was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is based on the 1918 Broadway play, ...

'' (1925) * '' Pearl of Love'' (1925)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chapin, Alice 1857 births 1934 deaths People from Keene, New Hampshire 20th-century American actresses American silent film actresses Actresses from New Hampshire American women dramatists and playwrights American suffragists American expatriates in England