Elizabeth Williams

Elizabeth Williams was an American stage actress and theater impresario who was actively performing during the first half of the 20th century. She was part of the first generation of black actresses in the dramatic repertory on the American stage, and is believed to be one of the first African-American women to establish her own stock theatre company, the Oriental Empire Stock Company, in 1902. She later was an active member of the Lafayette Stock Company in Harlem. In addition to her work in stage plays, she also performed in Broadway musicals.