Mark- looking over your list, nobody knows more about Marjorie Robb than Mike Findlay (see Introduce Yourself Thread). I met her when she was about 96 at her first Titanic talk at a little church down the street from her house in Westport Point Massachusetts(right outside of Fall River). She had made a trip to Litchfield Cathedral(England)- and heard the choir singing and said that it released something she had supressed for many years. Capt. Smith's statue is in this town you may remember. She decided that all were dead now from her family and at long last she would speak about the sinking. It had been forbidden in her family. Her Mother went into perpetual mourning for Mr.Newell and slept with his ring and watch under her pillow. She lived to be 102 and Marjorie was 103. Over the years Mike and I were her travel companions and as she grew older, naturally, her memories became a little jumbled. At age 96, though, she was as sharp as a tack! She remembered sitting at the table with the Astors and seeing Madeline in a gown with a long train and the sound the ladies' dresses made coming down the Grand Staircase. And at her age at the time of the disaster, she remembered rowing in the lifeboat to keep warm- she was a tall and vigorous New England gal! Many a snowy evening she would regale us about her trip on the Grand Tour- the funny romantic flirtation with an Arab on a white horse dashing about the hotel courtyard trying to impress her and romancing her in a cemetery- much to the dismay of her father! She was a coquette up until the last- and after I took Mike to meet her- I became "old hat"!! She loved to be the center of a handsome young man's attention! She traveled extensively in her life and loved Switzerland and the mountains- especially the Green Mountains.She travelled on the liner Romanic and kept a delightful diary.The family liked White Star ships. Going on a boat didn't bother her in the least. Mike can tell you even more about her life- her Father and sisters and son -who for a time was the director of the Fall River Marine Museum when the Titanic model arrived. I took my students to see her many times and she always kept them enthralled with stories of the good old days- not easily done with 125 teens. Even now they come up to me years later and recall Marjorie Robb. She was without a doubt one of the most remarkable people I ever met. She loved going out to Manchester's for dinner, pretty clothes, travelling ANYWHERE, her family home in Lexington, MA, driving out in the car, her children, and keeping up with all the new trends. She had an exciting life going back and forth to Philly, as a successful business woman-she had a brisk retail business-gorgeous lampshades. She was remarkably well- read, a brilliant conversationalist and played the violin (which was lost on Titanic).We have fond memories of her 100th birthday, her recollections on tape and a zillion photos. Her son died tragically young about 5 years ago. Mike can tell you about her daughters- I believe one is still alive in California. Her granddaughter has Mr. Newell's ring found on his body- it has Neptune's trident on it. Marjorie and her family are buried in Mt. Auburn Cemetery, Boston. This is just a very brief sketch of her- one could write a book on her life! Hope you read the Marshall Drew letter on this board. I knew him better than Marjorie and will tell you about that if you wish. The one consolation of my being a fossil is having been around when so many fascinating people were alive.
