Grace Miriam Kerns (August 27, 1879Some sources give her birth year as 1880 (her grave stone) or 1886 (her death certificate); however, she appears in her family's household as a child under one year of age in the 1880 Federal Census returns. (via Ancestry) – September 10, 1936) was an American soprano, called the "Nightingale of the Trenches" for her popularity during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. She made over a hundred recordings during the 1910s.

Early life

Kerns was born in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, and lived in

Williamsport, Pennsylvania Williamsport is a city in, and the county seat of, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It recorded a population of 27,754 at the 2020 Census. It is the principal city of the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a popula ...

, a daughter in the large family of Andrew Jackson Kerns and Catharine Marinda Clark Kerns. Her father was a saw manufacturer. She studied voice with

Emma Cecilia Thursby Emma Cecilia Thursby (February 21, 1845 – July 4, 1931) was an American singer popular in Europe and the United States. Biography Thursby was born to John Barnes Thursby, a rope manufacturer, and Jane Ann (Bennett) Thursby. She grew up in Wi ...

. She studied in Europe in the summer of 1913.

Career

Kerns began her professional singing career as a church and oratorio soloist in New York City. She made over a hundred recordings during the 1910s, for

Victor The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

, Columbia,

Okeh Okeh Records () is an American record label founded by the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, a phonograph supplier established in 1916, which branched out into phonograph records in 1918. The name was spelled "OkeH" from the initials of Ott ...

, Empire, and

Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These invention ...

labels. She recorded duets with other singers including Margaret Keyes,

Reed Miller James Reed Miller (February 29, 1880 – December 29, 1923), who recorded as Reed Miller and as James Reed, was an American tenor who had an active career as a concert and oratorio singer during the first quarter of the 20th century. He posse ...

John Barnes Wells John Barnes "Jack" Wells (October 17, 1880 – August 8, 1935), was an American composer and singer. He sang as a tenor. He was once described as "one of the best known concert singers in New York." He was a popular singer and was featured on man ...

Nevada Van der Veer Nevada Van der Veer Miller (July 25, 1884 – September 26, 1958) was an American contralto singer. Early life Emma Nevada Van der Veer was born in New York, the daughter of George Wyckoff Van der Veer and Jennie Lind Catlin Van der Veer. She was ...

, and

Henry Burr Henry Burr (January 15, 1882 – April 6, 1941) was a Canadian singer, radio performer and producer. He was born Harry Haley McClaskey and used Henry Burr as one of his many pseudonyms, in addition to Irving Gillette, Henry Gillette, Alfred Alex ...

. She sometimes sang under other names, including Miriam Clark and Grace Nash. During World War I, she went to France to entertain the troops, earning the nickname "Nightingale of the Trenches." After the war, she returned to church soloist work, and giving concerts. She also sang in radio broadcasts. In her later years she taught voice at

Randolph-Macon Women's College Randolph College is a private liberal arts and sciences college in Lynchburg, Virginia. Founded in 1891 as Randolph-Macon Woman's College, it was renamed on July 1, 2007, when it became coeducational. The college offers 32 majors; 42 minors; � ...

in Virginia.

Personal life

Kerns, her brother, and her nephew all died in a car accident near

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula ...

in 1936.

References

External links

Grace Kerns and Mildred Potter singing "Whispering Hope"
(1916), from YouTube
Grace Kerns singing "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls"
(1912), from YouTube * Grace Kerns singing "Kiss Me Again", from Internet Archive {{DEFAULTSORT:Kerns, Grace 19th-century births 1936 deaths American sopranos People from Norfolk, Virginia Randolph College faculty