Titanic's most beautiful Women

I've started this thread to give people a chance to post a picture of a woman that sailed on Titanic that they think by opinion is a beauty. When you Post a picture, please be sure to leave the name of the woman, and any short biographical facts you might know about them. I'm trying to come up with ideas to write a book about. Basically, I need a female hero to write about, but I don't know how to choose one on my own...I'd appreciate the help. Thanks! Post away!
~*~
Faith

 

Sorry, but I don't have the ability to post pictures. But the first one that comes to mind for me is Violet Jessop.

 

Kritina, Do you happen to know where I might be able to find a picture of Ms. Violet Jessop?

Thank you SO much for your post. I appreciate it!
~*~
Faith

 

A picture link is right below:

This was taken when she was serving with the Red Cross during WWI, I believe.

 

You're right, she really is gorgeous. Thanks for the picture link!!! Its great.
~*~
Faith

 

i think there were several beautiful women on Titanic, but it depends what you definition of "beauty" is.

young Mrs. Astor, i think was very beautiful although i know other's who think she was rather plain. a picture can be found here: https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/item.php/1050.html

Mrs. Allison i think was beautiful, there are pics on her biography page. if you want a clearer pic of her, you can give me your email address and i will email it to you.

 

I always thought the Countess of Rothes was beautiful. I'm not so good at uploading, but here's a picture of her- http://www.red-duster.co.uk/Rothes.jpg

Since there's a thread about Titanic's most beautiful women, how about a "Titanic's Most Handsome Men" thread?

 

Hey Everyone,

I think the make up of today would make these gals even prettier looking!

 

I remember we had this beauty contest about three years ago- with the same candidates. My choice,although she did not age gracefully, would be Miss Hays- whose sweet face here is surpassed by the beauty that counts most, inner beauty,charity and kindness as evidenced by her tender care of the Navratil boys, even after they arrived safely in New York.

 

I suppose Mrs. Bishop was beautiful, or at least sexy, attending her age. But my favourite female passenger is still the Countess of Rothes. Although she wasn't exactly young and gorgeous, she appeared to be quite elegant and had a formal attitude with a royal behavior, making her a pretty attractive woman.

Best regards, João

 

Julia Cavendish tops my list. A regal beauty.

We've had this discussion elsewhere and Dorothy Harder always gets honorable mention. So does Jean Hippach.

Leila Meyer may not have been exactly beautiful, by our standards, but she was certainly exotic and attractive.

Virginia Clark has been described as a beauty, and one certainly gets the impression she was attractive to men, but the only image I've seen of her was the passport photo in Gallery of Titanic Visages. In that photo, she certainly doesn't look beautiful, though slim and dark-haired. I like to think it was just an unflattering photo - which passport photos tend to be (with all the hundreds they must look at each day, airport check-in people still exclaim over mine!).

And I remember many of us were pleasantly surprised at how attractive Bertha Chambers was when G of TV came out.

Differences in standards between the generations are apparent when you look at photos of some of these passengers. I have the impression that the senior Lucile Carter was known for her looks (she was at least known for her fashion sense) but most photos show her looking rather matronly. And then Berthe DeVilliers made her living on the basis of her attractiveness, but photos seem to show a rather heavy-set, hard-featured woman. Looks to me like her attractiveness lay elsewhere...

Violet Jessop was definitely beautiful, as was said earlier. I'm trying to think of which other ladies of the crew and second and third class passengers were lookers. Nellie Hocking comes to mind, and Ada Clark looks like she has a rather winsome quality to her, though I haven't seen enough photos of her to really get a sense. Judith Geller described Jane Quick as attractive.

Really, there were very many good-looking people on the ship. But I vowed to quit writing such long posts.

 

Brian’s right that standards of beauty change. We may not agree with what was thought of as beautiful in 1912 but the following women — that is the well known women who made the news and gossip columns — were considered among the "lookers" of the day:

1) Lucy Duff Gordon



2) Eleanor Widener



3) Marian Thayer



4) Dorothy Gibson



5) Noelle Rothes



6) Helen Churchill Candee



Note that only Dorothy Gibson and the Countess of Rothes are younger women, ages 22 and 33 respectively. The others are all over 40. The Edwardian period was a time when "maturity and savoir faire were prized in a woman," as one writer put it.

 

I forgot Lucile Carter

 

The none-existent one that I created for my book takes the cake.
If there was a picture, I'd show her. You can paint your own image of her one day...

 

>The none-existent one that I created for my book takes the cake.

The fictional characters we imagine always look better than the real people that were there, don't they? As long as she doesn't look like Susan St. James - she's probably a looker.

Lucy Duff-Gordon has a rather puzzling expression on her face in that photograph. Almost as if there's something off camera that's about to hit her. I am supposing those layers of pearls that she wears are genuine? It wasn't uncommon then for the wealthy to wear faux-pearls - as culturing of pearls was in its infancy and natural pearls could be worth millions. (Anyone familiar with the Maisie Plant story?)

Even if Lucy Duff-Gordon was successful with her fashion design firm, I'm sure that she couldn't afford a strand that was natural and that compares with that of Maisie Plant. Just a thought.

EDIT: Must mention, even though natural pearls could be worth millions in 1912, the practice of culturing pearls, once widespread actually harmed the value of the pearls that were much rarer than cultured pearls. Maisie Plants 1.2 or so million dollar double strand of pearls was valuable enough for her to trade Cartier her flat in about 1916, but in 1957, they sold at auction for only $170,000.

 

"…Lucy Duff-Gordon has a rather puzzling expression on her face…"

I don’t think it’s her expression. It’s just her face.

"…I am supposing those layers of pearls that she wears are genuine?…"

Yes. She spent a lot of money on jewels, especially pearls. The pearl necklace she lost on Titanic was worth $50,000. Her assistant Molyneux later referred to her extravagance in jewelry, saying she used to buy pearls "the size of pigeon’s eggs." Among the prize pieces in her collection was a watch that had belonged to Madame du Barry, and a priceless emerald necklace given her by the Maharajah of Cooch-Behar.

"…It wasn't uncommon then for the wealthy to wear faux-pearls…"

The fashion for fake pearls and other imitation jewelry among the rich was not in full swing until the 1920s; Chanel had a major hand in making faux pearls fashionable during the Deco era.

"…Even if Lucy Duff-Gordon was successful with her fashion design firm, I'm sure that she couldn't afford a strand that was natural and that compares with that of Maisie Plant…"

LDG was more than successful; she was one of the richest businesswomen of her time. She could indeed afford valuable pearls as most wealthy women could. Few purchased insanely expensive ones like the Maisie monstrosity; not even Eleanor Widener, whose collection of pearls was famous, owned anything approaching the supposed price of the necklace you’re talking about. I think the amount was greatly exaggerated as the later auction price seems to indicate. The press often improved on the cost of luxury items to make them seem more exclusive and outrageous. One account claimed Lucile’s (Lady Duff Gordon’s fashion house) sold fur coats priced at $60,000. That was a sum inflated about 10 times -- even sable and ermine seldom went for more than between $11,000 and $14,000.

 

>I think the amount was greatly exaggerated as the later auction price seems to indicate. The press often improved on the cost of luxury items to make them seem more exclusive and outrageous.

Perhaps. Although there is the possibility that there was something about that strand that made them exceptional (unusual size, luster, roundness, etc.) The later auction price, some say, was caused by the fact that by 1957 the process of culturing pearls had been perfected. Cultured pearls were the answer to Chanel's faux pearls that she made famous that you refer to. Why the price of natural pearls deflated, was because it was very difficult then (and still is without taking the strand apart) to tell cultured pearls from natural (unnucleated) pearls - so people became much more cautious buying strands of natural pearls.

(I stand corrected on Lucile's success, BTW)

>One account claimed Lucile’s (Lady Duff Gordon’s fashion house) sold fur coats priced at $60,000. That was a sum inflated about 10 times -- even sable and ermine seldom went for more than between $11,000 and $14,000.

I wouldn't be surprised by a price hike like that at all, honestly. Aren't there purchase receipts from the fashion house somewhere in an archive? I would imagine so, as receipts of purchase still exist from Samuel Bing's "L'Art Nouveau" store. I suspect, however, that the fashion that is so prevalent today with many women no matter where they stand financially for brand names, was also prevalent among those who would shop Lucile's - and that she (Lucile) probably charged more than what is usually charged because of name 'prestige'. Jean Patou could do it and so could Chanel - and they still do today.

 

In my opinion, far and away the greatest beauty on the 'Titanic' (at least in first-class) was Julia Cavendish. I'm just so sad that no high-resolution, studio portrait of her has yet come to light. The only images I've seen are reproductions from the contemporary press and so are rather grainy and indistinct. As I've mentioned elsewhere, a portrait of her in her presentation get-up is absolutely top of my 'Titanic' wish-list!

Lady Duff Gordon (far and away my favorite passenger) had a lovely face - well, she was getting on a bit by 1912 but pictures of her taken at the turn of the century show an incredibly attractive woman. How does Meredith Etherington-Smith describe her? As having a 'piquant' or 'naughty' expression? I love that, it hits the nail on the head exactly!

Noelle Rothes was also very pretty - my favourite image of her, aside from the familiar one of her 'kit-cat' and in profile, with her lovely neck and shoulders rising out of a mist of white tulle, is the one Lord selected for use in the illustrated 'A Night to Remember'.

Incidentally, the Edwardian studio photographers - namely Lallie Charles and Rita Martin - made their subjects look quite heart-breakingly gorgeous. One can see why Cecil Beaton was so inspired by them.

Mary Marvin was a real looker, it would seem. Oh yes - and Marian Thayer.

 

I'd have to say the 'Helens' were the most attractive; Newsom, Bishop and Candee. The Fortune sisters were also attractive. The picture in Alan Hustak's book shows that Mabel retained her beauty even in middle age. Jane Hoyt was another, although she looks very snobbish.

 

Actually Brian mentions Virginia Clark. The LA newspapers ran photos of her, which were featured in Don Lynch's two part article and she was very pretty. Also, Jean Hippach also aged very well like her mother. Very pert looking.