Terence Florence Healy was born Los Angeles County, California, in the United States of America, in November 1889, the daughter of Irish immigrants, Terence A. and Elizabeth Healy (née Sweeny). Her father was a dairyman. Her mother died in San Francisco, aged 37 years, and Terence and the older and younger sister were raised by their father. While a child, she was known as Florence, but began to be known as Terence as she grew to adulthood.
She married William Hiram Gray, in Alameda County, California, on the 30th June 1909, and the couple had one son, named Stuart Graham, who was born in June 1911. The family home was at Lerida Avenue, Oakland, California, and her husband was a buyer for a large dry goods firm in Los Angeles, California.
In 1914, her mother-in-law, Carrie Gray, had gone to Scotland to spend time with her married daughter, Ethyl Graham, in Edinburgh, Scotland. Ethyl’s husband was a Scottish medical physician, working in a hospital in Edinburgh.
In the spring of 1915, her father-in-law, James P. Gray, decided to go to Edinburgh to bring his wife home and it was determined that his daughter-in-law, Terence, and his grandson, Stuart, should go with him and on their arrival, it was intended that Terence and Stuart would stay there for an extended holiday. It was also decided that her husband, William Gray, should travel with them as far as New York. Accordingly, the party of four set out on April 22nd 1915 from San Francisco to travel to New York, to meet the Lusitania for the journey across the Atlantic Ocean.
Leaving William Gray at the quayside, the three trans-Atlantic travellers subsequently boarded the liner at Pier 54 in the harbour there on the morning of 1st May 1915 having booked second cabin passage for the voyage to Liverpool. Six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, with the liner only twelve miles off the coast of southern Ireland and only hours away from her destination, she was torpedoed and sunk, by the German submarine
U-20. Both Terence Gray and her son Stuart were killed as a result, although James Gray survived. Florence Gray was aged 25 years.
In The San Francisco Chronicle published the day after the sinking, an article about the loss reported the concern expressed by Terence Gray‘s father. It stated: -
“We haven’t had any word from Florence,” said Mr. Healey (sic.) last evening, “and I feel sure that her husband, who is now in New York, has heard nothing either. For knowing how anxious I am, I know that William would immediately wire me if he heard any word from my daughter and grandchild.”
Nothing was ever heard of either of them again, however and as neither of their bodies was ever recovered and identified afterwards, neither has a known grave.
The Mixed Claims Commission later awarded William Gray the sum of $25,000.00 in compensation for the loss of his wife and son.
California Marriage Records from Select Counties 1850 – 1941, 1900 U.S. Federal Census, 1910 U.S. Federal Census, Cunard Records, Mixed Claims Commission Docket No. 2557, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Examiner, PRO BT 100/345, UniLiv D92/2/206, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Nyle Monday, Lawrence Evans, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.