''Barbara Frietchie, The Frederick Girl'' is a play in four acts by

Clyde Fitch William Clyde Fitch (May 2, 1865 – September 4, 1909) was an American dramatist, the most popular writer for the Broadway stage of his time (). Biography Born in Elmira, New York and educated at Holderness School and Amherst College (clas ...

and based on the heroine of

John Greenleaf Whittier John Greenleaf Whittier (December 17, 1807 – September 7, 1892) was an American Quaker poet and advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States. Frequently listed as one of the fireside poets, he was influenced by the Scottish poet ...

's poem "Barbara Frietchie" (based on a real person:

Barbara Fritchie Barbara Fritchie (née Hauer; December 3, 1766 – December 18, 1862), also known as Barbara Frietchie, and sometimes spelled Frietschie, was a Unionist during the Civil War. She became part of American folklore in part from a popular poem ...

). Fitch takes a good bit of artistic liberty and intertwines her story with that of his own grandparents' love story, which also takes place during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career, she was known for her strong, realistic screen p ...

took her film name from the name of the play, and a British actress named Joan Stanwyck who starred in one of the play's productions, perhaps in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. An illustrated version of the poem is contained in

James Thurber James Grover Thurber (December 8, 1894 – November 2, 1961) was an American cartoonist, writer, humorist, journalist, and playwright. He was best known for his gag cartoon, cartoons and short stories, published mainly in ''The New Yorker'' an ...

's ''

Fables for Our Time and Famous Poems Illustrated ''Fables for Our Time and Famous Poems Illustrated'' is a 1940 book by James Thurber. Thurber updates some old fables and creates some new ones of his own. Notably there is 'The Bear Who Could Take It Or Leave It Alone' about a bear who lapses i ...

''. The play met with mixed reviews in 1899 because of the romance he added to the tale, but it would be successfully revived a number of times. Fritchie, a central figure in the history of

Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in, and the county seat of, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. Frederick's population was 78,171 people as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Maryland, second-largest ...

, has a stop in the town's walking tour at her home. When

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

passed through Frederick in 1943, he stopped at the house and recited the poem from memory. At 90 years of age she waved the Union flag out of her window despite opposition from

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern the ...

's troops, who were passing through Frederick. This event is the subject of the 1864 poem: :"Shoot, if you must, this old gray head, :But spare your country's flag," she said. :A shade of sadness, a blush of shame, :Over the face of the leader came; :The nobler nature within him stirred :To life at that woman's deed and word; :"Who touches a hair of yon gray head :Dies like a dog! March on!" he said.

Known performances

*July, 1899 at the Y.M.C.A. auditorium in Mansfield, Ohio ource: Mansfield (OH) News: 11 July 1899*October 23, 1899–January 1900—

Criterion Theatre The Criterion Theatre is a West End theatre at Piccadilly Circus in the City of Westminster, and is a Grade II* listed building. It has a seating capacity of 588. Building the theatre In 1870, the caterers Spiers and Pond began developmen ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

*February 1900— Poli's Theatre,

Naugatuck, Connecticut Naugatuck ( ) is a consolidated borough (Connecticut), borough and town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town, part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, Connecticut, Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, had a population of ...

*March 19–March 24, 1900— National Theatre,

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Starring

Julia Marlowe Julia Marlowe (born Sarah Frances Frost; August 17, 1865 – November 12, 1950) was an English-born American actress, known for her interpretations of William Shakespeare's plays. Life and career Marlowe was born as Sarah Frances Frost, on Aug ...

Presented by

Charles Frohman Charles Frohman (July 15, 1856 – May 7, 1915) was an American theater manager and producer, who discovered and promoted many stars of the American stage. Frohman produced over 700 shows, and among his biggest hits was '' Peter Pan'', both ...

* October 15, 1900

Chicago, IL Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

with Julia Marlowe & Bruce McRae at grand opening of Illinois Theatre *January 28–March 1901— Academy of Music, Manhattan

Film versions

The play was adapted for film in

1915 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January *January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction". *January 1 * ...

and

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20–January 30, 30 – Kuomintang in Ch ...

External links

''Barbara Frietchie''
at the

Internet Broadway Database The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It was conceived and created by Karen Hauser in 1996 and is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade asso ...

* 1899 plays Plays by Clyde Fitch Poetry and hymns by John Greenleaf Whittier {{1890s-play-stub