Charles William Wallace

Charles William Wallace (February 6, 1865 – August 7, 1932) was an American scholar and researcher, famed for his discoveries in the field of English Renaissance theatre.

Intending to be a teacher, he graduated from Western Normal College, Shenandoah, Iowa, and taught briefly in country schoolhouses before becoming a professor of Latin and English at his alma mater.

The Wallaces' work provided a vastly improved comprehension of the role of the children's companies in English Renaissance drama.

Wallace's dedication to his research took an unusual, perhaps unique form: in order to finance further work, he became a wildcatter in the oil industry in 1918.

Wallace's most important publications are his books, The Children of the Chapel at Blackfriars, 1597–1603 (1908), The Evolution of the English Drama Up to Shakespeare (1912),[1] and The First London Theatre: Materials for a History (1913).