Constance Selina Henshaw was born in late 1914, probably in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, the daughter of George Cecil and Mabel Iris Henshaw (née Baker). The family home was at Coronation Court, Fifth Avenue, Saskatoon, and both of her parents had emigrated from England. At the time of her birth, her father was a customs officer.
In the spring of 1915, her mother decided to travel home, to take Constance to see her grandparents. Constance’s maternal grandfather was a barrister-at-law, and an honorary director to the Barnardo’s Homes in London, while her paternal grandparents lived in Woodford Bridge, Essex.
As a result, she booked second cabin passage for them both on the Lusitania, and having left Saskatoon at the end of April by rail; they boarded the liner in New York harbour on the morning of 1st May 1915 and left the port just after mid-day.
When the ship was torpedoed and sunk six days later, with the liner only hours away from her Liverpool destination, although Constance Henshaw’s mother survived, she herself was killed. She was only five months old.
In an article published in The Saskatoon Daily Star on Thursday 23rd September 1915 after her return to Canada, her mother described her infant daughter's fate: -
I was in my bath when the boat was struck. I had left Constance asleep in the cabin and at first I thought that we had only grounded. Slipping on a few clothes I went to the cabin and picked up the baby; just then the boat gave a sickening list and I knew something serious had happened. The life belt which was fastened to the ceiling stuck fast and I was unable to get it down. The lights then went out and I started to grope my way along the corridor to the stairs. .....
The boat listed over farther and a rush of water hit me in the face. I found myself struggling in the waves and I was sucked down, but I managed to hold on to my baby until we came to the surface. On coming up men, women and children were all around me hanging on to bits of wreckage, many with gaping wounds and all screaming for help.
There was a terrible explosion as a boiler burst and something hit me in the back. The baby slipped out of my arms and I was sucked down again. .....
The baby's body was never found. I guess it was too small.
Another account, however, printed in the morning edition of The Cork Examiner for Thursday 13th May, gives a slightly different version: -
When the explosion occurred, a gentleman handed her a life preserver. Her baby was killed as a result of being knocked against some part of the ship, but the mother held on to the body as she struggled in the water, until she became unconscious. Four hours after the the sinking, she was picked up unconscious by a trawler, and conveyed to Queenstown, where she gradually recovered, but her grief was poignant indeed at the loss of her child!
Cunard records published in March 1916 refer to the baby as "Mary", but the above account would indicate quite clearly that her name was Constance.
Although her remains were never found, she is remembered on the gravestone over her paternal grandparents grave in West Norwood Cemetery, London, England.
Cunard Records, Cork Examiner, Saskatoon Daily Star, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Kenneth Henn, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.