Elizabeth Cooper (2) (–1761)

Elizabeth Cooper, née Price, was born around 1698-1700 and raised in London, England. In 1722, she married John Cooper, an auctioneer specializing in art and books. After he died in 1729, she was left with five children to support and became an actress and later a playwright. Her comedy The Rival Widows; or, The Fair Libertine opened at Covent Garden in 1735 and ran long enough for her to have two benefit nights. She also wrote an unpublished play, The Nobleman, which was performed once at the Haymarket in 1736. She did historical research on English poets and in 1737 published a groundbreaking anthology called The Muses Library, with the assistance of antiquarian William Oldys.