Inez Clough was a renowned concert singer from Worcester, Massachusetts. She toured around the world with the John Isham’s Oriental American Company. Clough performed in England for ten years and began to appear in music halls before joining the Williams and Walker Company.

Clough was born on March 1, 1873. Her professional career as a concert singer began in 1896, very little is known about her early childhood.

During her career, Clough worked with legendary performers including George Walker and Bert Williams. In 1902, she appeared in Dahomey, Abyssinia in 1906, and Bandana Land in 1907. Clough later joined the cast of Shoo Fly Regiment which was written by James Weldon Johnson and his brother.

Her greatest triumphs as a serious actress were in a series of plays presented under the title Three Plays for a Negro Theater on April 5, 1917, at the Garden Theater in Madison Square Garden.

During the 1920s, Clough appeared in the landmark musical Shuffle Along by Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake and its successor, The Chocolate Dandies. Clough died of peritonitis in 1933.

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Notable Black American Women