Anne Eliza Isham (January 25, 1862 – April 15, 1912) was a passenger aboard the . She was one of four female first-class passengers to die when the ship sank. An unsubstantiated rumor states she died because she did not want to leave her

Great Dane The Great Dane is a German list of dog breeds, breed of large mastiff-sighthound, which descends from hunting dogs of the Middle Ages used to hunt bears, wild boar, and deer. They were also used as guardian dogs of German nobility. It is one o ...

behind; a woman was reportedly sighted in the water a few days later with her arms frozen around a dog.

Biography

Anne Eliza "Lizzy" Isham was born on January 25, 1862, in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, the first child of Edward Swift Isham, an American lawyer and politician from Vermont, and Frances "Fannie" Burch. Her father established a law firm with

Robert Todd Lincoln Robert Todd Lincoln (August 1, 1843 – July 26, 1926) was an American lawyer and businessman. The eldest son of President Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln, he was the only one of their four children to survive past the teenage years ...

, son of former US President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

, called Isham, Lincoln & Beale in Chicago, Illinois. Initially Isham lived in Chicago and was a member of the Friday Club and the Scribbler's Club. In 1903 she moved to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and lived with her sister, Frances Isham, who had married Harry Shelton. Isham's brother, Edward Isham, lived in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and she was going back to the United States to spend the summer with him. She boarded the ''Titanic'' at

Cherbourg Harbour Cherbourg Harbour (French: ''rade de Cherbourg''; literally, the "roadstead of Cherbourg") is a harbour situated at the northern end of the Cotentin Peninsula, on the English Channel coastline, in Normandy, northwestern France. With a surface ...

on April 10, 1912. Her cabin (C-49) was next to that of Colonel Archibald Gracie, although he did not remember ever seeing her. However, other passengers, such as Kornelia Andrews, her sister Mrs. John Hogeboom, and their niece Gretchen Longley, were acquainted with her, and even searched for her on the Carpathia after being rescued. One story that has gained currency is almost certainly false. According to the unsubstantiated legend, a woman was said to have been in a lifeboat ready to lower when she was told that she would be unable to bring her Great Dane on board with her. She chose to get out of the lifeboat. A few days later, a passenger on a passing ship reported seeing a woman's body floating in the ocean and holding on to the body of a large dog. It was only in later years that Isham's name came to be associated with the story, as she was the only first class woman lost in the disaster whose whereabouts during the disaster were unknown. There is no actual evidence for this story, however, as Isham did not even own a dog. She was one of four first class women who died in the disaster, and her body was never identified. A memorial to her was erected by her family in Vermont.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Isham, Anne Eliza 1862 births 1912 deaths Deaths on the RMS Titanic People from Chicago 20th-century American women 20th-century American people