tionist, and Garland. She was a member of the NA-
TIONALASSOCIATION FOR THEADVANCEMENT
OFCOLOREDPEOPLEand an active participant in
the YOUNGWOMEN’SCHRISTIANASSOCIATION.
Bibliography
Thompson, Clara Ann, J. Pauline Smith, and Mazie
Earhart Clark. Voices in the Poetic Tradition: Clara
Ann Thompson, J. Pauline Smith, Mazie Earhart
Clark.With an introduction by Mary Anne Stewart
Boelcskevy. New York: G. K. Hall, 1996.
Thompson, Eloise Alberta Veronica Bibb
(1878–1928)
A writer and journalist who prided herself on craft-
ing meaningful responses to vital and controversial
issues of her day. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana,
she was the daughter of Charles and Catherine
Adele Bibb. Her father was a U.S. customs inspec-
tor. She was part of the upper-class circle that in-
cluded ALICEDUNBAR-NELSON, one of her literary
contemporaries and a close friend. She attended
the Oberlin Academy school from 1899 through
- In 1903, after a short stint as a teacher, she
traveled north to attend the Teachers’ College at
HOWARDUNIVERSITY. Following her graduation in
1908, Bibb began working in WASHINGTON, D.C.,
at the Colored Social Settlement, a university-run
organization. She married journalist Noah Thomp-
son, and the couple relocated to California. In Los
Angeles, Eloise Thompson became a regular con-
tributor to local newspapers such as the Los Ange-
les Sunday Tribune. An active member of the
Catholic community, she also wrote frequently for
religious periodicals.
Thompson made her literary debut in 1895,
when she was 17 years old. Poems,published by the
BOSTON-based Monthly Review Press, reflected
her ties to the New Orleans community and hon-
ored her friendship with Alice Dunbar-Nelson. In-
deed, the two talented, young writers shared their
literary debut; Dunbar also published Violets and
Other Tales,her first book, with the Monthly Re-
view Press in the same year.
Thompson’s debut as a playwright drew in-
tense public scrutiny and prompted much debate.
A Reply to the Clansman(1915) was a pointed re-
sponse to the racist novel The Clansman by
Thomas Dixon that in 1915 became the film Birth
of A Nation,produced by D. W. Griffith. Thomp-
son’s play was considered for theatrical and film
production but ultimately was set aside because of
its direct engagement and challenge to the white-
authored texts by Dixon and Griffith. Subsequent
plays included A Friend of Democracy (1920)
CAUGHT(1920), Africans(1922), and COOPED
UP(1924), and Thompson saw her works per-
formed widely. COOPEDUPearned an honorable
mention from judges T. MONTGOMERYGREGORY,
Edith Isaacs, Alexander Woolcott, and Robert
Benchley in the 1924–25 OPPORTUNITYliterary
contest. The ETHIOPIANARTPLAYERSlater pro-
duced the work.
Thompson published two short stories in Op-
portunityduring her literary career. “MADEMOISELLE
’TASIE” and “MASKS” appeared in September 1925
and October 1927, respectively.
There are few details about Thompson’s last
years and her death in 1928. Opportunitynoted her
passing in its February 1928 issue.Bibliography
Beasley, Delilah L. Negro Trailblazers of California.1919;
reprint, New York: G. K. Hall, 1997.Thompson, Louise(1901–1999)
The last surviving member of the Harlem Renais-
sance era, Thompson was an energetic partici-
pant in the literary, social, and political circles of
the period.
Born in CHICAGOin September 1901, she was
the daughter of William and Lula Brown Toles.
She lived with her mother following her parents’
separation in 1903. Lula Toles and her daughter re-
located to Berkeley, California, and Lula’s marriage
to Hadwick Thompson soon followed. Louise at-
tended Oakland High School and then went on to
study economics at the University of California-
Berkeley. When she graduated cum laude in 1923,
she became one of the first African-American
women to earn a degree from the institution.
Widespread racism prompted her to pass in order
to acquire employment. She adopted a Mexican
persona and was able to gain work in San Fran-
cisco as a secretary. She and her mother returned
to Chicago in 1925.Thompson, Louise 515