Nelle Richmond Eberhart

Nelle Richmond Eberhart (August 28, 1871 – November 15, 1944) was an American librettist, poet, and teacher. She is known for her long collaboration with composer Charles Wakefield Cadman. She wrote 200 songs and the librettos for five operas for which he composed the music.

Early life Eberhart was born Ellen Loretta McCurdy in 1871 in Detroit, Michigan, daughter of John Thomas and Cora Amelia Newton McCurdy. Her mother remarried. At an early age, Nelle was given her stepfather's surname, Richmond. Her family moved to Nebraska, where she was raised.

As a young woman she developed a strong interest in music. She gained certification and taught school. In 1894 Richmond married Oscar Eberhart, a physician.

Career The Eberhart family moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1900 for her husband's work. She wrote the lyrics for some 200 songs, and the librettos for the five operas that they created together.

In addition to her emphasis on Native American themes, Eberhart also showed interest in Asian and Pacific Island themes. She wrote lyrics for "Sayonara: A Japanese Romance for One or Two Voices, op. 49," and "Idyls of the South Seas" (music by Cadman). Her interest in historical drama inspired their A Witch of Salem: An American Opera (1926), music by Cadman.

She also wrote several Christian hymns ("The Dawn of Peace Resplendent Breaks," "Give Praise," "O Come and Adore Him"), and general sentimental art songs ("I Hear a Thrush at Eve," "Lilacs," "Memories," "The Moon Behind the Cottonwood").

Eberhart also published poetry in literary reviews and general interest publications, such as Granite Monthly and Munsey's Magazine.

Personal life The Eberhart couple left Pittsburgh in 1917, living next in New York and then Chicago. In 1941 they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, where they lived the rest of their lives.

Nelle Richmond Eberhart died in 1944, in Kansas City, Missouri.