Caroline Lane Brown was a First Class passenger of the Titanic. She was best known for being the last woman to leave the ship in the last functional lifeboat, Collapsible D.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Caroline Lane Lamson, was born on 8th July 1852 in New York City, New York, United States. Her parents were Charles Lamson and Elizabeth Robertson Marshall. He was an important figure in the shipping and import business.
At some point she married John Murray Brown, a publisher. He died on 29th April 1908, leaving her a widow. She had two daughters and three sons.
In 1912, Caroline sailed to Europe to be with her sister, Lady Elizabeth Drummond, who was seriously ill. Lady Drummond died on 25th March 1912 in Paris, France. Elizabeth was with two of her sisters when she died: Caroline and Charlotte Appleton, who had also sailed from America to be with her and Kathrine de Florez who lived in Paris. Another sister, Malvina Cornell, was at sea at the time, on her way to join them in Paris from America.
Aboard the Titanic[]
Following the funeral of Lady Elizabeth Drummond, who was buried in Great Britain, Caroline Brown, Charlotte Appleton and Malvina Cornell boarded Titanic in Southampton on 10th April 1912. When Titanic stopped at Cherbourg, they were joined aboard Titanic by Edith Evans, a niece of the husband of a sister of Caroline. As the sisters were traveling on their own, Colonel Archibald Gracie offered to take care of them through the voyage. His wife was a friend of them, and he had attended school with Charlotte Appleton’s husband.
On the night of April 14, Titanic had struck an iceberg, and after midnight, the order to evacuate was handed out, when it was apparent that she was going to founder.
During the sinking, after hearing the order had been given to load the lifeboats, Colonel Archibald Gracie guided Caroline and her sisters towards the lifeboats; being prevented from getting any nearer to the lifeboats himself, he left them in the hands of the crew there, thinking they would be safely loaded in to the lifeboats. However the ladies waited, and nearly 2 hours after the collision they still hadn't left yet.
With Titanic's bow well under water, she had only had 35 minutes to live. Colonel Archibald Gracie had just made his way over to the starboard side of the ship, after Second Officer Charles Lightoller had ordered passengers to move from the port side, when he was soon 'pained to discover' Caroline Brown and Edith Evans standing there having been separated from Caroline’s sisters, who had managed to escape in Emergency Lifeboat 2 prior. He took them by their arms and escorted them towards Collapsible D, the last lifeboat to safely leave the ship.
Again being prevented by the crew from getting near the lifeboat, Colonel Gracie had to leave them on their own once more. Edith Evans insisted that Caroline Brown should seek a place in the lifeboat first as she had children. Exactly why Edith Evans didn't want to join her in the lifeboat is unclear: The crewman in charge of the lifeboat did later say that “he could not take” two more women, and told them that there was another boat going to be readied, one of the other collapsible boats, those of course were never successfully launched. There was, however, plenty of room aboard the boat for another person. Charles Lightoller said there were no women about when he lowered the boat. So it seems she stepped back or wandered off. Caroline would be one of the very last females to leave Titanic and survive.
Amongst the passengers sailing on Carpathia as it rushed to rescue Titanic’s passengers was Caroline’s uncle Charles Marshall, traveling with his wife Josephine and their daughter, Evelyn. Arriving in the first lifeboat to reach Carpathia, her sisters had got a steward to fetch their uncle. Then, they watched the lifeboats arriving, waiting for Caroline. Collapsible D with Caroline aboard was safely rescued. During the previous day, the sisters aboard Titanic had communicated with their family aboard Carpathia by sending a wireless message. Colonel Gracie, who saved Caroline’s life, was also amongst those rescued by Carpathia; he had survived the night on top of the upturned collapsible lifeboat which had floated off Titanic as she went down.
Later life[]
From 1918/19, Caroline was a trustee of Acton Memorial Library in Acton, Massachusetts. She is said to have been their first female trustee.
Caroline Brown died on 26th June 1928 at Emerson Hospital, Concord, Massachusetts. She was 75 years old. She was buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, Massachusetts on 29th June 1928
Portrayals[]
A Night to Remember (1958)[]
Margaret Bull as Caroline Lane Brown in A Night to Remember (1958)
"Sorry, only one more lady..."
Caroline Brown entering Collapsible D in A Night to Remember (1958)
Caroline Brown appear in A Night to Remember (1958), portrayed by Margaret Bull. She appear during the loading of Collapsible D with Edith Corse Evans.
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James Moody: Sorry, only one more lady Edith Evans: [To Caroline Brown] You go first... Caroline Brown: Oh, don't! Edith Evans: You've children waiting at home, please... Caroline Brown: No, madam! James Moody: Oh come along please, ma'm, we haven't got much time |
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Sixth Officer James Moody told them that the boat could hold only one more lady, Edith Evans offer her place to Caroline Brown because she have children waiting at home. Caroline refused at first, but James Moody urged her to get into the boat so she was forced to accept it, leaving Edith Evans on the sinking ship.
Titanic (1997)[]
Caroline Lane Brown in Titanic (1997)
Rose and Jack meet Caroline Brown, Colonel Gracie and Edith Evans in Titanic (1997)
Caroline Brown on Collapsible D (Rose's Boat) in Titanic (1997)
Caroline Brown, portrayed by Barbara Chronowski, made a number of small cameos in James Cameron's Titanic 1997, along with Colonel Archibald Gracie and Edith Corse Evans, while Rose and Jack ask them are there any boats left on the starboard side, Colonel Gracie offers Rose to join him with Brown and Evans but she didn't answer him and left them. Caroline tried to stop Rose, but she was running too fast.
During the loading of Collapsible D, Second Officer Charles Lightoller fired several warning shots, terrifying Caroline. As Collapsible D lowers, Rose jumps back into the sinking ship, terrifying Caroline and the other women.