Rhoda "Rosa" Mary Abbott (née Hunt) (14 January 1873 – 18 February 1946) was a passenger on the . She was the only female passenger who went down with the sinking of the ship and survived.

Early life

Abbott was born ''Rhoda Mary Hunt'' in

Aylesbury Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, South East England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery, David Tugwell`s house on Watermead and the Waterside Theatre. It is in central Buckinghamshire, midway between High Wy ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

, on 14 January 1873, the daughter of Joseph Hunt and his wife Sarah Green Hunt. She grew up in Aylesbury, and spent her early adulthood in

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

with her family, before moving to the United States in 1894. Upon her arrival in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

, she met London-born

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champion Stanton Abbott, whom she married soon after in 1895. The couple had two children, Rossmore (born 21 February 1896) and Eugene (born 31 March 1898). She settled as a housewife and mother and was active at the local Grace Episcopal Church, as well as helping around the house. In 1911, Abbott was divorced from her husband, returned to England with her sons on the RMS ''Olympic'', and started supporting herself and them by working as a sewer, as well as becoming a soldier in

The Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7million, comprising soldiers, officers and adherents col ...

; however, she quickly realized that the boys were not happy living in England and booked a return to America in April 1912. The family boarded the RMS ''Titanic'' as third-class passengers in

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

on 10 April. Onboard, she befriended Amy Stanley, Emily Goldsmith, and May Howard, who had cabins nearby. On 15 April 1912, the family was already asleep when the ''Titanic'' hit an iceberg. By 00:15, they were alerted by a steward to put on life jackets and retreat to the ship's deck. After waiting in line to follow other third-class passengers to the deck, Abbott and her sons waited at the second-class saloon area. There, her son Rossmore is said to have knelt in prayer asking that his mother's life be spared even if he and his brother were not saved. Even though "only women and children" were allowed past the gate, Abbott's sons (aged 13 and 16) were able to accompany their mother to the lifeboats. They arrived when one of the final remaining lifeboats, Collapsible C, was already being loaded around 02:00. When it was her turn to enter the lifeboat, she realized that her sons would be denied a spot, and stepping back, refused a place in the lifeboat. When the ship sank, Abbott was swept away from the deck into the water. She tried to clasp her sons but to no avail. Having given up finding them, and at risk of

hypothermia Hypothermia is defined as a body core temperature below in humans. Symptoms depend on the temperature. In mild hypothermia, there is shivering and mental confusion. In moderate hypothermia, shivering stops and confusion increases. In severe h ...

in the freezing water, she was able to reach Collapsible Boat A, which was washed off ''Titanic'' at 02:15. Hours went by before Fifth Officer Harold Lowe returned to the site with lifeboat 14 to retrieve survivors in the water. Several occupants of Boat A had either succumbed or slipped back into the icy water; of the people on board, Abbott was one of only 13 who survived. Her two sons were lost at sea, and only Rossmore's body was later identified. According to Rhoda, she had no regret about remaining on the ''Titanic'' until the very end, because it allowed her to stay with her sons. On board the rescue ship , Abbott received special care in the smoking room. Her legs were badly damaged by the cold water so that she could not move until arrival in New York. There she was hospitalized for two weeks in Manhattan's St. Vincent's Hospital. She was one of the last survivors to be discharged.

Later life

As a result of the sinking of the ''Titanic'', Abbott had respiratory problems, including severe bouts of

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, cou ...

, for the rest of her life. On 16 December 1912, she married longtime friend George Charles Williams, and the couple settled in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

. By 1928, they had returned to England to settle Williams' father's estate in London. Abbott took care of her husband until his death in 1938. Abbott died in London of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

as a result of

hypertension Hypertension (HTN or HT), also known as high blood pressure (HBP), is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms. Long-term high bl ...

on 18 February 1946, at the age of 73.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abbott, Rhoda 1873 births 1946 deaths RMS Titanic survivors People from Aylesbury British expatriates in the United States 20th-century British people 20th-century British women 19th-century British people 19th-century British women Deaths from hypertension