Mary Ann McCann (1890 – 1966) was an Irish-born American woman who was awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal, for rescuing passengers, including up to nine children, from the 1904 PS ''General Slocum'' steamboat fire in New York City.
Early life
Mary McCann immigrated to the United States from
Athlone
Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midlands Region with a population of ...
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In June 1904, McCann was a teenager recovering from
measles
Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease caused by measles virus. Symptoms usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days. Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than , cough, ...
and
scarlet fever
Scarlet fever, also known as Scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by ''Streptococcus pyogenes'' a Group A streptococcus (GAS). The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects childr ...
,"A Recognized Heroine and Some Unknown Ones" ''New-York Observer'' (September 9, 1909): 337. when she witnessed the fire aboard the PS ''General Slocum'' from the hospital on North Brother Island. McCann, reportedly a strong swimmer, waded into the
East River
The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Queens ...
and helped passengers to safety, including as many as nine children. While hospitalized with the injuries she sustained that night, McCann also caught
diphtheria
Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild clinical course, but in some outbreaks more than 10% of those diagnosed with the disease may die. Signs and s ...
.
Aftermath
Her role in the rescue of ''Slocum'' survivors was publicized nationally, often with editorial commentary on her immigrant status. "And learned men talk of the danger of immigration to this country!" marveled the ''Spokane Press''. "May Ireland send us many another Mary McCann." McCann received hundreds of proposals of marriage by mail, from men who read of her feat. Lawyer Francis Patrick Garvan offered McCann housing and funds for her education, after her testimony at the coroner's inquest.
Although she was recognized for her heroism by the coroner's investigation and by the Volunteer Life Saving Society, she was "overlooked" by the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission in 1906. In 1908, McCann was a nurse in training, and the only woman among the nine people awarded silver Lifesaving Medals by the United States Congress, for courageous action on the night of the disaster. She received the medal in person a few months later,"Medal for Girl Life Saver" ''New York Times'' (March 4, 1909): 1. via
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when it was presented to her by the Speaker of the House, Joseph Gurney Cannon.
McCann found work as a cashier later in 1904. She attended the Florence Crittenton Training School in Washington, D. C. She lived at the Florence Crittenton Mission Home in New York for a time as a young woman.
Later years
Mary McCann married David A. M. Perlman in 1916. They had four daughters. She died in May 1966, at Barnegat Memorial Hospital in