Drake, Frances Denny (1797–1875)

American actress. Born Frances Ann Denny, Nov 6, 1797, in Schenectady, NY; died Sept 1, 1875, in Louisville, Kentucky; dau. of John Denny; m. Alexander (Aleck) Drake (comic actor), 1822 (died 1830); m. George Washington Cutter (lawyer, poet); aunt of Julia Dean (1830–1868, actress); children: Julia Drake (actress who married theater magnate Harry S. Chapman and was the mother of actresses Blanche and Ella Chapman), Alexander E. Drake (army colonel), Richard Drake, Samuel Drake (actor and farmer).

Talented stage actress, joined Samuel Drake's company as a teenager and worked with many of Drake's children, including Julia Drake (mother of famed actress Julia Dean) and future husband Alexander Drake; made stage debut in Cherry Valley, NY, in comedy The Midnight Hour, then traveled with company to Lexington, Kentucky, giving performances en route; won considerable fame in Drake's Kentucky theaters; left Kentucky (1819) and went on to perform in Montreal and Boston; made New York City debut as Helen Worrett in Man and Wife (1820) and joined Park company; played at Chatham Theater in New York (1824); went West with husband and returned to father-in-law's circuit, making occasional tours in East; after husband died (1830), married George Washington Cutter but soon divorced; achieved star status, performing Shakespeare in New York and receiving warm welcome in England (1833); continued acting throughout 1840s, often alongside daughter Julia Drake.

See also Noah M. Ludlow, Dramatic Life as I Found It (1880).