Key facts about Elizabeth Margaret Burns
- Burns was born in Newark in 1870 to Irish immigrant parents and trained professionally as a nurse.
- She studied at major New York hospitals and began working for the Spedden family in 1906 as nursemaid to Douglas Spedden.
- She boarded Titanic at Cherbourg, occupied cabin E40 and travelled on the Spedden party’s ticket.
- The Spedden group survived together in Lifeboat 3.
- Burns helped care for survivors aboard Carpathia and later spoke publicly about the courage she witnessed during the disaster.
- During World War I she worked with the Red Cross and helped recruit nurses before moving into industrial nursing.
A Newark woman who trained for a professional nursing career
Elizabeth Margaret Burns was born in Newark, New Jersey, on December 7, 1870, to Irish immigrant parents Patrick Burns and Mary Neary. She was educated in Newark before pursuing professional nursing in New York.
Her training included Bellevue Hospital, Roosevelt Hospital, Sloane Maternity Hospital and specialist work connected with children’s disease. That background made Burns much more than a domestic attendant. By the time she joined the Spedden household, she was an experienced nurse responsible for a young child’s health as well as daily care.
Nursemaid to Douglas Spedden
Burns began working for Frederic and Margaretta Spedden around 1906 as nursemaid to their son Robert Douglas Spedden. Douglas had difficulty pronouncing her name and affectionately called her “Muddie Boons.”
She travelled regularly with the family. In early 1912, after Douglas recovered from an illness, the Speddens included Burns on a long European holiday. Their other attendant, Helen Alice Wilson, travelled with them as well.
Cabin E40 and Lifeboat 3
Burns boarded Titanic at Cherbourg on April 10. The Spedden party travelled on ticket 16966, and Burns occupied first-class cabin E40.
During the evacuation, Frederic and Margaretta Spedden, Douglas, Elizabeth Burns and Helen Wilson all escaped in Lifeboat 3. That made the Spedden household unusual among Titanic family groups: every member of the travelling party survived the sinking.
She went back to work as a nurse aboard Carpathia
Once Carpathia picked up the lifeboats, Burns used her professional training to help survivors who were cold, injured or in shock. Her role shifted immediately from passenger to caregiver.
After reaching New York, Burns told a Newark newspaper that she had seen acts of courage rather than the cowardice some early reports emphasized. Her comments focused on people helping one another in extreme conditions and on the suffering that continued even after the boats were safely away from Titanic.
Red Cross work and nursing after Titanic
Burns continued travelling after 1912 and appears to have left the Spedden household within the next few years. During World War I she worked with the New York County Chapter of the Red Cross and helped recruit nurses for wartime service.
Later she worked in industrial nursing. Burns suffered long-term health problems and died in New York City on May 29, 1921, aged 50. She was buried in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in New Jersey near her parents.
Sources used for this biography
Burns’s specialist biography incorporates hospital training, passport and travel records, the Spedden household history, a contemporary Newark interview and her death certificate.
- Encyclopedia Titanica: Elizabeth Margaret Burns Detailed nursing career, Spedden employment, cabin E40, Lifeboat 3, Carpathia care and later life.
- TitanicSurvivors.com: Helen Alice Wilson Companion biography for the other attendant travelling with the Spedden family.
- TitanicSurvivors.com: Carpathia rescue Context for Burns’s work helping survivors after the lifeboats reached Carpathia.
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Frequently asked questions
Who was Elizabeth Margaret Burns?
She was an American trained nurse who worked as nursemaid to Robert Douglas Spedden and travelled with the Spedden family on Titanic.
Which cabin did Elizabeth Burns occupy?
She occupied first-class cabin E40.
Which lifeboat did Elizabeth Burns survive in?
She survived in Lifeboat 3 with the rest of the Spedden travelling party.
What did Elizabeth Burns do aboard Carpathia?
She used her nursing training to help care for survivors who were cold, injured and in shock.