Kitty Cheatham

Catharine Smiley Cheatham (1864 – January 5, 1946) was an American singer, monologist, and actress.

She was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1864. Her father, Richard Boone Cheatham, was a Tennessee politician who was the mayor of Nashville from 1860 to 1862, and her mother was Frances Ann Bugg.

She began her career in music at age 14 by performing at First Presbyterian Church in Nashville. She later went on to study in New York City, Paris, and Berlin.

She married William Henry Thomson on June 9, 1894.

Her professional stage debut was made in London, England in 1904, where she performed renditions of African-American folk songs. She is credited with having helped preserve these traditional songs and bring them to European audiences. While in London, she was introduced to and befriended members of the British Royal Family, for whom she would go on to perform many times. However, it is her contributions to children's music for which Cheatham is best known as a musician, as she became popular throughout the world by performing children's songs and stories. During her career, she performed for thousands in England, France, Germany, and the United States, and organized children's concerts for the New York Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra. She published two collections of her songs, Kitty Cheatham: Her Book in 1915, and A Nursery Garland in 1917. Her repertoire included over 1000 songs in nine languages.

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