Helen Jones was born in Swansea, Glamorgan, Wales, on 9th October 1908, the illegitimate daughter of Alfred Francis Smith and Elizabeth Jones. Her father was employed by The Swansea Tramway Company, but had immigrated to Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, in the United States of America, just before, or after her birth.
In August 1909, Helen and her mother joined her father in Ellwood City, where he had found work as an electrician with The Shelby Tube Works. When they boarded the Carmania at Liverpool, both mother and daughter had their names recorded as Smith, despite the fact that Helen’s parents were not married, and when Helen was born, her
family name was recorded as Jones!
On the 7th April 1913, her parents finally married in New Castle, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, and then, in November 1914, their second daughter, named Elizabeth, affectionately known as “Bessie”, was born.
Perhaps because of the war in Europe, however, the Smith family decided to return to South Wales. As a result, they booked second cabin passage on the Lusitania and joined her at New York before she sailed there for the last time, on 1st May 1915. Helen’s aunt, Mrs. Cecilia Owens, and her two boys also joined them, returning to Wales for a holiday. Herbert Owens, Cecelia’s husband, had accompanied the party to New York City and had seen them all safely board the Lusitania.
When the ship was struck, six days later, Helen became separated from her parents and sister and the rest of the family, and owed her life to the fact that she had the presence of mind to ask for help from journalist Ernest Cowper from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Cowper, who was a saloon passenger, picked her off the deck and put her into a lifeboat onto the lap of fellow second cabin passenger Elizabeth Hampshire, who came from Glossop in Derbyshire.
From there, Helen Smith was eventually rescued and landed at Queenstown, where she became quite a melancholy attraction to the people of the town who gave her dolls and other presents. All the time, she would announce pathetically to them that her parents would be coming soon! Her photograph, which was published in newspapers all around the world, was one of the most enduring images of the sinking!
The rest of her immediate family were not so fortunate, however and all three perished in the sinking and no trace of them was ever found again. Although her aunt survived, her two cousins also perished.
She was eventually taken to England by Mrs. Owens who had retrieved her in Queenstown and re-united with her grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. John Jones, 81. Cecil Street, Manselton, Swansea. Cunard had given her aunt a boat and rail ticket for them both to Birmingham and travelling expenses of £0-15s-0d., (£0.75p.). All the way home, she had been informing anyone who asked how she was: -
Everybody is sorry for me because my mummy and daddy have gone, but they‘ll come back. They’re coming on another boat soon.
However, by the time that she had got to mainland Britain, it must have dawned on her that her parents and sister had been lost, because according to the experiences of second cabin passenger Annie Richardson: -
When we got to Crewe, many had to change. I had a wait of four hours, during which I met many other passengers, some (had) lost their husbands, others their wives. One lady had lost her two boys, eleven and thirteen years and she was taking charge of a little girl, of five years, who had lost all, mother, father, aunt and uncle that were with her, the child said “They are all down in the sea but my Granny will meet me at Liverpool.”. She was too young to realise her loss, poor darling.
Not long after the sinking, Helen Smith’s uncle Mr. H.T. Jones, a Wrexham schoolteacher, went back to his native Swansea to comfort Helen and his sister Mrs. Owens. On his return home, he related their account of the sinking to a representative
of his local newspaper The Wrexham Advertiser, which was published in the edition of 15th May 1915. This account stated: -
At the time the torpedo struck the vessel, Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Owen (sic) were in their cabins preparing to unpack in order to get a change of clothing for the children who were playing about on the deck. Helen declares that when the torpedo exploded she heard the sound and then the people began to get into something of a panic, which caused the little ones to call out for help.
She secured the attention of Mr. Cowper, who placed her in a cabin, telling her not to move for he would presently come back for her. In a short time he came back and found Helen waiting for him. He placed her into a boat in which he also got. Mr. Cowper afterwards gave up his seat to someone else and the boat was launched safely.
This boat was picked up by a patrol vessel and Helen was safe on its deck. She noticed that several people were swimming about in the water. She recognised Mr. Cowper. She called out to the men to save him because he had saved her and this was done, and when Helen and her preserver met on the deck of the patrol ship there was much jubilation. Ultimately, Helen was met by her bereaved aunt, and both travelled to Swansea.
The story that Mr, Cowper swam with Helen in his grasp is not correct, for the little girl was never in the water at all according to her own story.
Helen is evidently a young lady of decided opinions. She says that she is very grateful to Mr. Cowper for saving her, yet she does not really like him. Her childish and very reasonable explanation is that he wanted to take her with him to Canada, whereas she wanted to go to Swansea to see her grandfather and grandmother - a choice one can imagine the brave and generous Mr. Cowper will very readily concur in and that he will as readily forgive her criticism for the same reason.
Mr. Jones said that his family has been unable to get in touch with Mr. Cowper but they hope to do so to thank him for the splendid service he rendered to this small lonely victim of German Kultur on that awful day.
In the summer of 1915, a successful claim was made on her behalf to The Lusitania Relief Fund, by The Reverend G. Penar Griffiths, of Pen Uwyn, Manseltown, Swansea. Manseltown was the area of Swansea where her mother Elizabeth Smith had been brought up.
The Lusitania Relief Fund had been inaugurated in May 1915, by The Lord Mayor of Liverpool and other local dignitaries from the world of commerce, to aid second and third class survivors and relatives of those lost, who had suffered financial hardship as a result of the sinking. Its awards committee subsequently granted Helen Smith an allowance of £0-3s-6d., (£0.17½p.) and the paucity of this amount would indicate that she was being looked after financially, by others.
Helen Smith was raised by her maternal grandparents and an extended family of uncles and aunts. In 1931, she married John Henry Thomas in Swansea. Her husband was a buyer for a wholesale company. The couple had one son, John Henry, who was born in November 1932. The famil
Helen Thomas died in Swansea on the 8th April 1993, aged 84 years.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, Cunard Records, 1910 U.S. Federal Census, 1939 Register, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, Cheshire Daily Echo, Western Mail, Wrexham Advertiser, Last Voyage of the Lusitania, Lusitania - Unravelling The Mysteries, Seven Days to Disaster, Liverpool Record Office, NGMM DX/1729, UniLiv.D92/1/1, UniLiv D92/2/147, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.