Cordelia Howard

Cordelia Howard ( – ) was a child actress on the American stage. Her most famous role was as Little Eva in the stage adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin. One commentator wrote "The name of Little Cordelia has become synonymous with that of Little Eva."

Cordelia Howard was born on , in Providence, Rhode Island, the daughter of actor and theatrical producer George C. Howard and actress Caroline Emily Fox Howard. Her first stage role was in 1850, as a fairy sprite in the opera The Mountain Sylph. She originated the role of Little Eva in George L. Aiken's 1852 stage adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin, with her mother as Topsy and her father as Augustine St. Clare. The play was immensely popular, and Howard starred in Little Eva for hundreds of performances, continuing in the role until she was a teenager. She also starred as Little Dick and Pearl in stage adaptations of Oliver Twist and The Scarlet Letter, as well as the title character in the temperance play Little Katy; or, The Hot Corn Girl.

In 1871, she married Edmund Jesse Macdonald, a bookbinder, and retired from the stage. Cordelia Howard died on August 8, 1941, in Bourne, Massachusetts.