New Glasgow’s Pearl Fraser is a woman who should be remembered, Lynn MacLean believes.
On June 27, a century ago, Fraser was the Acting Matron aboard the medical ship, The Llandovery Castle when it was sunk by a German U-Boat off the coast of southern Ireland.
A local historian, MacLean says there were about three nurses on board the ship from the Maritimes, and Fraser is often mentioned in the accounts of the tragedy. This week, MacLean had the opportunity to travel to Toronto to watch an opera based on the historic event and is happy to hear of other events across the country marking the anniversary of the tragedy.
Too often, she said, the story and the heroism of the woman is forgotten.
“The story of Pearl Fraser being from New Glasgow is sort of a lost story,” she said, adding that Fraser came from a very prominent family.
Pearl’s father was D.C. Fraser, who was Lt.-Governor of Nova Scotia and a member of parliament.
As a hospital ship, the Llandovery Castle would transport more than 600 people in need of medical attention to Canada before returning back to Europe for more. They were on a return trip to Britain when they were torpedoed by the Germans.
The attack on a medical ship was considered a war crime, as it would have been clearly marked with large red crosses on the side. MacLean says the Germans believed that the ship may have been transporting American soldiers and shot without taking the time to search the ship as they would have been allowed to do.
After the ship was hit, the nurses boarded into a lifeboat, but were unable to get it to land in the water properly and their oars were broken while trying to keep from hitting the ship.
A common account is told of Pearl Fraser asking a sergeant on board. “Do you think there is any hope for us?”
“No,” he responded simply.
Shortly after the lifeboat was drawn into a whirlpool as part of the Llandhovery Castle sank. The sergeant was the sole survivor of the lifeboat and was picked up by another lifeboat. He gave accounts of the bravery of the nurses and how even faced with death, they didn’t complain.
It’s an account MacLean would like more people in Pictou County to be reminded of.
“Everything you read will say they faced their death with such courage,” MacLean said. “I think it’s an important local story about a woman who should be remembered which often doesn’t happen.”
