Louise M. Pomeroy née Ryder (c. 1853 – 7 January 1893) was an American actress and writer who was popular in Shakespearean roles in Australia. Pomeroy was born in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, a daughter of Col. Ryder, a lawyer and judge. Her father's family was of Scottish descent and her mother's of German. At a young age she was married to a Frank Thomas, and after his death she went on the stage. On 15 May 1871 she was married to newspaper owner Mark M. "Brick" Pomeroy, with whom she had a daughter, Louise Rider Pomeroy. Under the pen name "Elm Orlou" she edited a section of her husband's ''Democrat'' and wrote essays which were widely reproduced. Her husband objected to her stage ambitions and they separated: he remarried in 1876. She had been an amateur actor before, as a pupil of J. B. Roberts, and made her professional debut as

Juliet Juliet Capulet () is the female protagonist in William Shakespeare's romantic tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. A 13-year-old girl, Juliet is the only daughter of the patriarch of the House of Capulet. She falls in love with the male protagonist Ro ...

on 16 October 1876 at the Lyceum Theatre, New York. She developed a reputation for Shakespearean heroines: Rosalind in ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wil ...

'', Juliet in ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'', Imogene in ''

Cymbeline ''Cymbeline'' (), also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in British Iron Age, Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concer ...

'', and Viola in ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Viola an ...

''. She was brought out to Australia by Alan Hayman with great expectations, which were fully realised. Her first appearance was at the

Queen's Theatre, Sydney Queens is a borough of New York City. Queens or Queen's may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Queens (group), a Polish musical group * "Queens" (song), a 2018 song by Saara Aalto * ''Queens'' (novel), by Stephen Pickles, 1984 * "Queens", ...

, from 7 October 1880 playing on successive nights Rosalind, Lady Macbeth and Juliet. She played Juliet in Melbourne's Theatre Royal to T. C. Appleton's middle-aged Romeo, but his distant performance was overlooked by the audience in their appreciation for Pomeroy. Such was her popularity that they flocked to see her in the rarely-played ''

'' and ''

A Winter's Tale ''The Winter's Tale'' is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, many modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some criti ...

''. in which she played both Hermione and Perdita to an enthusiastic audience. She also drew rave reviews for her impersonation of the "doleful Dane",

Prince Hamlet Prince Hamlet is the title character and protagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Hamlet'' (1599–1601). He is the Prince of Denmark, nephew of the usurping King Claudius, Claudius, and son of King Hamlet, the previous King of Denmark. At ...

. In 1882 Pomeroy formed a company to tour country towns in Victoria and Queensland. Members included W. J. Holloway and Mrs Holloway,

G. P. Carey G is the seventh letter of the Latin alphabet. G may also refer to: Places * Gabon, international license plate code G * Glasgow, UK postal code G * Eastern Quebec, Canadian postal prefix G * Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia, ...

and Miss Dolly Forde (Mrs Carey), Arthur Elliott ("an actor of considerable promise") who played Romeo to her Juliet, Edwin Palmer, R. A. Vernon, Misses Blanche Louis and Florence Louis. From these she organised a small but efficient company to tour India, playing first at the Corinthian Theatre, Calcutta (now

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

) on 1 December. Elliott and Pomeroy were married at

Bendigo, Victoria Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria (Australia), Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2022, ...

, on July 30, 1833. They moved to the US in 1884, and were soon in high demand. She died of pneumonia in New York City on January 7, 1893, aged 40.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pomeroy, Louise 1850s births 1893 deaths 19th-century American actresses 19th-century Australian actresses American Shakespearean actresses American stage actresses Actresses from Ohio Colony of New South Wales people