The Encyclopedia Americana International Edition (1994) entry on Maude Adams
Adams, ad'amz, Maude (1872-1953), American actress, who was a great stage star in the early 20th century. She projected an elfin quality that was especially suited to the plays of James M. Barrie, including The Little Minister (1897; 1905; 1916); Quality Street (1902), and What Every Woman Knows (1908). She is best remembered, however, for her performance in Barrie's Peter Pan, which she first played in 1906.
She was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Nov. 11, 1872, the daughter of a leading lady in a stock company. As Maude Adams (her family name was Kiskadden, but she used her mother's maiden name), she first appeared on the stage while still a child. At 16, she joined the E.H. Sothern Company in New York. Later she became the leading lady of the Charles Frohman Stock Company.
After 13 years in retirement, she appeared as Portia in The Merchant of Venice (1931) and as Maria in Twelfth Night (1934). She headed the drama department at Stephens College from 1937 to 1943, and then taught part-time at the college. She died at Tannersville, N.Y., on July 17, 1953.
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