The new White Star liner RMS Titanic departed from Queenstown (now Cobh), Ireland, on April 11, 1912, with several suffragists aboard. United in a common cause, these women’s rights activists found themselves on the ship’s ill-fated maiden voyage for one reason or another. Titanic famously struck an iceberg at 11:40 pm on April 14 and sank beneath the waves nearly three hours later, at 2:20 am on April 15. Just over 700 of the 2,224 people on board survived. Those who lived were fortunate to secure a spot in one of the Titanic’s 20 lifeboats.
By a twist of fate, several suffragists were together in Lifeboat No. 6: Margaret “Molly” Brown, Helen Churchill Candee, Elsie Edith Bowerman, and Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall. All of them became famous for surviving the Titanic. And while undeniably transformed by their experiences in the disaster, it didn’t define them. History remembers these four women for that one night in April 1912. But this really doesn’t do them justice; there’s so much more to these “unsinkable suffragists.” These four women lived full, eventful, and passionate lives both before and after their experiences aboard the Titanic.
Margaret “Molly” Brown
Margaret Brown (née Tobin) was born to poor Irish immigrants in Missouri on July 18, 1867. She later moved to Colorado and married mining engineer James Joseph “J.J.” Brown on September 1, 1886. They prospered and had two children in 1887 and 1889. Unfortunately, however, Margaret and J.J. drifted apart and legally separated in 1909.
Even before the Brown family’s rise to wealth in the 1890s, Margaret actively fought for equal rights. She helped establish the Colorado chapter of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and worked to support local miners and their families. In 1894, she became a founding member of the Denver Woman’s Club, which enhanced women’s lives through ongoing education and philanthropy.
While traveling in Europe in early 1912, Margaret received news that her first grandchild was ill. The earliest ship returning to the United States was the Titanic. The soon-to-be “Unsinkable Molly Brown” boarded the Titanic at Cherbourg, France from the tender SS Nomadic.
Helen Churchill Candee
Helen Churchill Candee (née Hungerford) was born in New York City on October 5, 1858. She married businessman Edward Willis Candee in 1880 and had two children. However, he was abusive and ultimately abandoned his family. The pair divorced in 1896 after a long separation.
By April 1912, Helen had established herself as an author and interior decorator, first in the Oklahoma Territory and later in Washington, DC. While living in the nation’s capital, Candee became involved with NAWSA and served on the board of directors for its Washington, DC chapter.
Helen Churchill Candee was in Europe researching tapestries for a new book when she received news that her son was seriously injured in an accident. Eager to return to the United States as quickly as possible, she booked passage on the brand-new Titanic. Like Margaret Brown, she boarded the Titanic at Cherbourg on April 10, 1912.
Elsie Edith Bowerman and Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall
Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall was born Martha Edith Barber in Badingham, Suffolk, England on February 27, 1864. Martha preferred to use her middle name as an adult, and married William Bowerman in 1888. They had one child, Elsie, born on December 18, 1889. William died of acute bronchitis in 1895, and Edith married Alfred Benjamin Chibnall in 1907. They lived apart after two years of marriage but never appear to have separated or divorced.
Edith and Elsie were suffragettes who joined Emmeline Pankhurst’s Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) by 1910. This organization adopted radical and militant tactics to secure voting rights for British women. Under the motto “Deeds not Words,” Pankhurst and her supporters frequently marched, demonstrated, and used disruptive tactics. Their acts of civil disobedience included smashing windows, blowing up Royal Mail postboxes (an action for which Lusitania survivor Lady Rhondda was arrested in 1913), and participating in hunger strikes while imprisoned. Police attacked Edith in November 1910 at a demonstration near 10 Downing Street.
Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall recalled the experience:
Of course, I was very roughly handled, like the rest of the deputation, but was not arrested …… I went up to a policeman and said, “It is my intention to go to 10, Downing Street or die in the attempt.” His reply was to give me a blow on my head. He then caught me by the hair at the back of my head and, flinging me aside, said, “Die then!” I found afterwards that so much force had been used that my hair pins were bent double in my hair. [Fortunately] my hair pns (sic) bent; had they been steel and broken, they would have pierced my head ………. My seal-skin coat was torn to ribbons.
Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall and Elsie Edith Bowerman boarded the Titanic in Southampton, England on April 10, 1912. They were traveling to North America to visit family in Canada.
Thrown Together by Fate
Few passengers aboard the Titanic realized that the ship was doomed as Second Officer Charles Lightoller started loading lifeboats that cold April night. He recalled how “passengers naturally kept coming up and asking, did I consider the situation serious. In all cases I tried to cheer them up, by telling them ‘No,’ but that it was a matter of precaution to get the boats in the water, ready for any emergency.”
Moving on to Lifeboat No. 6, Lightoller ordered Quartermaster Robert Hitchens and Lookout Frederick Fleet to crew the boat. He put Hitchens in command. There was no panic on deck yet. “The quiet orderliness amongst the passengers,” the Second Officer wrote, “and the discipline amongst the crew, is a thing never to be forgotten.” Lightoller also recalled how neither man nor woman tried to enter a lifeboat without being ordered.
Margaret Brown helped get as many people as possible into lifeboats until a crewmember threw her into Lifeboat No. 6. Helen Churchill Candee fell and fractured her ankle while boarding. Otherwise there were no incidents while loading the boat. Second Officer Lightoller “could hear the band playing cheery sort of music” as Lifeboat No. 6 was lowered away with just 24 people aboard. It was designed to carry 65 total.
While on the lifeboat, Margaret Brown encouraged the other women to row to help keep warm. However, Quartermaster Hichens, described by some survivors as rude and unpleasant, discouraged them from doing so. In response, Brown threatened to throw him overboard. Hitchens cursed and grumbled, but was reportedly quiet after the confrontation.
At around 6 am, RMS Carpathia rescued the 24 survivors in Lifeboat No. 6. Passengers aboard the rescue ship photographed it and the other lifeboats as they approached the little Cunarder. These have become some of the most famous images in maritime history.
After the Titanic
Aboard the Carpathia, Margaret Brown promptly began raising funds to assist the destitute survivors of the Titanic disaster. She helped establish the Survivor’s Committee and raised nearly $10,000 by April 18 when the ship arrived. In recognition of their efforts during the rescue, she presented each Carpathia crewmember with a medal of valor, and Captain Arthur Rostron received a silver cup.
After fracturing her ankle, Helen Churchill Candee was forced to use a cane for nearly a year. But it didn’t slow her down at all. Upon returning to Washington, DC, she became one of the first Titanic survivors to publicly share her experiences during the sinking.
Immediately after the disaster, Elsie Edith Bowerman and Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall carried on with their visit to family in Canada. Additionally, they spoke at suffrage conventions all across North America. They eventually resumed working with the WSPU after returning to Great Britain.
These four women were remembered as Titanic survivors for the rest of their lives. That’s also what they’re largely remembered for today too. But they did more than just survive a tragedy. All of them made significant contributions beyond the Titanic disaster. They continued living their lives and fighting for equality.
Beyond the Titanic
As one of the most prominent survivors of the sinking, Margaret Brown used her fame to advocate for women’s rights. She began working closely with Alva Erskine Belmont, and they both eventually got involved with the National Women’s Trade Union League (NWTUL). Together, Belmont and Brown established the Conference of Great Women. In 1914, Margaret Brown launched a bid for the United States Senate. In addition to Alva Belmont, Alice Paul and Lucy Burns — founders of the National Woman’s Party (NWP) — supported Brown’s candidacy.
However, World War I interrupted the campaign. Margaret shifted her focus to European relief efforts and collaborated with the American Committee for Devastated France. Brown earned France’s highest honor, the Legion of Honour, for her efforts. She died on October 26, 1932. Her life was later immortalized in “The Unsinkable Molly Brown,” first as a Broadway musical and subsequently as a hit film starring Debbie Reynolds.
Helen Churchill Candee continued her active involvement with NAWSA and was well enough to participate in the Woman Suffrage Procession on March 3, 1913. As one of the equestrians leading the parade, Candee proudly rode down Pennsylvania Avenue, despite the near-riot that occurred.
Helen Churchill Candee served as a nurse with the Italian Red Cross when World War I broke out. She worked in Rome and later Milan, where she cared for many patients — one of whom was Ernest Hemingway. After the war, Candee traveled extensively and visited countries such as China, Japan, Cambodia, and Indonesia. Eventually, she became a correspondent for National Geographic and documented her experiences in these locations. Helen Churchill Candee died on August 23, 1949.
Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall remained an active member in the WSPU. In 1918, the Representation of the People Act granted women over 30 the right to vote. All men and women over 21 eventually got the vote in 1928. Edith died on October 8, 1953.
Like many other women, Elsie Edith Bowerman volunteered her services during World War I. She worked in Romania with the Scottish Women’s Hospitals in Foreign Service (SWH) and witnessed the Russian Revolution firsthand while in Saint Petersburg before returning to England in late 1917. Bowerman resumed her activities with the WSPU and helped Emmeline Pankhurst to organize mass meetings to support the British war effort. She was admitted to the Bar in 1924, becoming the first female barrister at the Old Bailey in London.
Following her work with the Ministry of Information and the BBC during World War II, Elsie Edith Bowerman returned to the United States in 1947 to help establish the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. It exists to this day. Bowerman died on October 18, 1973.
All four of these strong women survived one of the worst maritime disasters in history. But they didn’t let the tragedy define them. Some used their newfound fame as a Titanic survivor to elevate the causes that they felt passionate about — like women’s suffrage. Margaret Brown, Helen Churchill Candee, Elsie Edith Bowerman, and Edith Martha Bowerman Chibnall were all fierce advocates for equality. They deserve to be remembered as much for their advocacy as for surviving the Titanic.
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