Character Profile: Orian Davidson

Orian Davidson

Age: 27
Residence: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Class: First class
Cabin: B-71
Survived? Yes
Lifeboat: 3

Orian Davidson was the second of four daughters, and very much a typical lady of Edwardian high society. Her parents were of high social standing in Montreal, and from birth, she was constantly surrounded by the rich and powerful. She led a somewhat sheltered life, however, and until 1912, she had never been abroad.

Orian and her husband Thornton had traveled to Europe at the invitation of Orian's parents Charles and Clara Hays. Charles was the president of a Canadian railroad, and had traveled abroad to meet with the railroad's board of directors, which was based in London. He invited his wife, daughter, and son-in-law along so they could enjoy a European holiday while he attended to business. Also traveling with them were Clara's maid and Charles' secretary.

Orian visited England and France and grew especially fond of Paris, where she indulged in many of the latest French fashions. After several weeks, she and her family boarded Titanic to return home. They intended to take a private train back to Montreal once they reached New York.

Orian, her mother, and the maid left Titanic in lifeboat 3, which was only the third lifeboat to leave the ship. None of them knew at that point just how serious the situation was, and Orian's father assured her that Titanic would take more than 10 hours to sink. In fact, it sank in less than three. Thornton was a yachtsman and a strong swimmer, and for hours after she boarded Carpathia, Orian continued to hold on to the hope that he was alive. Sadly, she lost both her husband and her father in the sinking.

Orian and her mother were met by their family physician in New York and took a private train home. While Thornton's body was never recovered, Orian erected a memorial stone for him in Mount Royal Cemetery. Though she eventually remarried and moved to Calgary, Orian was buried next to Thornton's memorial when she died in 1979 at the age of 96.

Character Profile: Harry Elkins Widener

Harry Elkins Widener

Age: 27
Residence: Philadelphia, PA
Occupation: Gentleman
Class: First class
Cabin: C-82
Survived? No


Harry Widener was traveling home to Philadelphia with his parents George and Eleanor Widener after several weeks in London and Paris. The Wideners were one of the wealthiest and most prominent families in America, enjoying the same celebrity afforded to other millionaire families of the time (Astor, Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Carnegie, etc.). Harry's father made his fortune as the owner of the Philadelphia Traction Company, which operated every streetcar line in Philadelphia.

The Wideners were building a summer home in Newport, RI, and had traveled to Europe to purchase artwork for the new estate. Harry, an avid collector of rare books, seized the opportunity to purchase several antique volumes for his collection. By age 27, Harry's personal library contained an impressive 3,500 books. He boarded Titanic with an extremely valuable 1598 edition of Bacon's Essais.

Harry always fulfilled his social obligations, attending his mother's charity balls at the family estate, Lynnewood, with his younger brother and sister. However, Harry was generally quiet and bookish, preferring the characters in Shakespeare's plays to the coquettes of Philadelphia's high society.

On the night of the sinking, Harry joined his parents on the boat deck, and the three of them were sent to the promenade to board lifeboat 4. An hour and a half passed while crew members figured out how to open the promenade windows to let passengers through. By the time they opened the windows, only boat 4 and the collapsibles were left.

Harry helped his mother into the boat and bid her goodbye, stepping back to join his father. He was urged by his friend William Carter to try to save himself, but Harry refused, saying, "I think I'll stick to the big ship, Billy, and take a chance." Carter escaped in lifeboat C minutes later.

Harry stayed by his father's side until the end. Both perished, and their bodies were never recovered.

In Harry's memory, his mother funded the construction of the Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library at his alma mater, Harvard University. She donated his entire 3,500-volume collection so that, in death, he could enrich the lives of young scholars for generations to come.

Character Profile: Elsie Edith Bowerman

Elsie Edith Bowerman

Age: 22
Residence: Hastings, East Sussex, England
Occupation: Suffragette
Class: First class
Cabin: E-33
Survived? Yes
Lifeboat: 6

Elsie Bowerman and her mother Edith Bowerman Chibnall boarded Titanic bound for America to visit a friend, Mr. T. Guthrie of Cleveland, Ohio, at Guthrie's invitation. The two planned to travel on to Canada and eventually Alaska. This was not unusual for the two ladies, who often traveled long distances and were accustomed to a cosmopolitan lifestyle. The two ladies occupied first-class cabin E-33.

At a time when many women attended university for the sole purpose of finding a husband, Elsie took her studies very seriously. She enrolled at Girton College, Cambridge, in 1908, where she studied medieval and modern languages. While in college, Elsie devoted much of her time to athletics, especially field hockey. She was also a talented pianist and was elected class representative in her first year of school.

Elsie's father died when she was only five years old, and, never seeking the company of men, Elsie lived a life free of male influence. Fiercely independent, Elsie joined her mother in 1909 as an active member of the the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), the leading militant organization campaigning for women's suffrage in the UK. She quickly became the organizer of the Hastings branch of the WSPU, promoting debates and selling copies of Votes for Women.

Though Elsie inherited her father's fortune at age 21, she and her mother preferred to live modestly, saving money wherever they could. The first-class ticket the two purchased in 1912 was a rare indulgence indeed.

Elsie was woken by a steward on the night of April 14, 1912, and she and her mother hastily dressed and made for the boat deck. Both ladies were saved in lifeboat 6, the first boat launched from Titanic's port side.

The sinking did not interfere with Elsie's travel plans, and she continued on to Ohio, British Columbia, the Klondyke, and Alaska.