Miss Unsinkable – The Violet Jessop Story
Violet Jessop’s life was as turbulent as the seas she sailed. Born in 1887 to Irish immigrants in Argentina, Violet’s journey was marked by a series of miraculous escapes from maritime disasters, earning her the nickname “Miss Unsinkable.”
As a young woman, Violet moved to England where she followed her mother’s footsteps into a seafaring life, becoming a stewardess on ocean liners. Her first brush with disaster came aboard the RMS Olympic, the Titanic’s sister ship. In 1911, the Olympic collided with a warship, but Violet emerged unscathed.
The following year, Violet’s fate intertwined with that of the Titanic. Working as a stewardess, she was on board on that fateful night in 1912 when the “unsinkable” ship struck an iceberg. As the ship sank, Violet, calm and composed, helped passengers into lifeboats. Eventually, she too was ordered into a lifeboat, clutching a baby handed to her in the chaos.
Surviving the Titanic disaster did not deter Violet from the sea. During World War I, she served as a nurse aboard the HMHS Britannic. In a cruel twist of fate, the Britannic, also a Titanic sibling, suffered a catastrophic explosion and sank in the Aegean Sea in 1916. Once again, Violet survived, this time leaping from a lifeboat to avoid the ship’s propellers.
Despite these harrowing experiences, Violet’s love for the sea never waned. She continued her career at sea for many more years, before retiring to a quiet life on land. Violet Jessop’s story, punctuated by unthinkable tragedy and miraculous survival, remains a testament to her resilience and the enduring human spirit.
Violet Jessop died in 1971, leaving behind a legacy of courage and an extraordinary tale of survival against all odds. Her story, “Miss Unsinkable,” is not just about the disasters she escaped, but about the strength and perseverance of a woman in a time when the sea was a domain ruled by men.
