Olive North, 25, was a British citizen from Saskatoon, Saskatechwan, Canada. She survived the Lusitania sinking. She was in a damaged collapsible that filled with 34 survivors, including Archie Donald, George Bilbrough, Angela Pappadopoulo, and Thirza Winter, until they were afraid to take on more for fear of swamping.
Their collapsible was picked up by Juno. Aboard Juno, she met sailor Percy Hanson, whom she later married.
In Preston, she is erroneously named “Olive Hanson” before her Lusitania rescue.
References:
Hoehling, A.A. and Mary Hoehling. The Last Voyage of the Lusitania. Madison Books, 1956.
Preston, Diana. Lusitania: An Epic Tragedy. Berkley Books, 2002.
Olive North was from Heckmondwike, Yorkshire, not from Canada. Her older sister had emigrated to Canada with her husband and Olive had been to visit them, but she did not live there. She was aboard the Lusitania in order to return to England.
She did not meet Percy on Juno. She already knew him before she went to Canada. He also was not a sailor either; he worked as a postmaster.
(Posted by great niece and great, great niece of Olive North/Hanson)
My great grandfather was called Frank North and lived in Yorkshire when I was a child (1970″s) I just wondered if there was a connection between Olive and him. He was born in 1885 I think😄
Percy was indeed a sailor on the Juno but was posted to another ship some months before the sinking of the Lusitania. I have copy of the letter Percy sent to Olive on hearing that she was saved. After the war Percy was The Postmaster for Heckmondwike.
(posted by grandson of Percy and Olive)
I have tried previously to reply but suspect this site is no defunct
Percy was at sea during the war and worked as a radio officer. He had a keen interest in radio and was the second person in the UK to be awarded a transmitting licence but on the outbreak of war his equipment was confiscated. His war diary is in the IWM and is unremakable save for the fact that he did 13 months without setting foot on land. His ship stopping only to take on coal. He became the Postmaster for Heckmondwike after the war.
Olive,having watched bodies thrown out of the lifeboats stayed on board and went down with the ship. Someone gave her chair and she managed to put her arm through a looped rope on an up turned lifeboat. I did not know about the collapsible. She was in the water for three hours.
Many years later Olive took part in a TV documentary which staged reconstructions of the sinking. Following this she became mentally ill which I now believe to be post traumatic stress disorder.
She never received any compensation and the public donations from both sides of the atlantic were not distributed.
Posted by Grandson of Percy and Olive
Percy volunteered for the Royal Navy in 1914 and served as a radio officer until his discharge in 1918 when he married Olive. By coincidence he served on the Juno but had been posted to the Marmova and was in Madeira at the time of the sinking. Percy became the Postmaster for Heckmondwike in Yorkshire.
David (Grandson of Olive and Percy)
I have copy letter sent from by Percy from HMS Marmora in Madeira to Olive when he learned that she had survived the sinking. (original is Maritime Museum collection)
Posted by David Hanson granson of Olive & Percy.
Would be interested to hear from Louise as I don’t have you on my family tree.