Over a century after its destruction, the mention of the Lusitania still evokes a shudder. With a loss of 1,201 lives, it remains among the world’s deadliest – and most influential – shipwrecks.
May 7 marks the 110th anniversary of the loss of the British Cunard liner, which helped steer the United States into World War I against Germany. There were some area connections to the tragedy.
George Groves, an English immigrant who farmed near Sycamore for over 40 years, lost his life on the Lusitania, as did David Loynd, a missionary who was also born in Britain. Loynd had been the pastor at Deer Park Baptist in LaSalle County.
There was also Charles Plamondon, an Ottawa native who was a leading Chicago industrialist. Plamondon’s wife, Mary, also perished on the Lusitania. Ironically, the couple had celebrated their 36th anniversary on the ship the day before the sinking.
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When launched in 1907, the Lusitania was the largest vessel in the world, weighing 31,550 tons, and was one of the grandest liners of its day. With a top speed of 25 knots, she could sail away from U-boats, which infiltrated the Atlantic waters and were a source of contention between warring nations.
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On May 7, 1915, the Lusitania, carrying 1,960 passengers and crew, was off the coast of southern Ireland and sailing a straight course at a slow speed of 12 knots. This was a departure from the usual course of action in dangerous waters, full speed ahead in zigzag fashion.
At 2 p.m., the Lusitania was rocked by a torpedo from a German submarine and sank in a mere 18 minutes. The shot was fired without warning, a breach of international protocol. Among those lost was American tycoon Alfred Vanderbilt.
Germany argued that the Lusitania was an armed merchant ship, an untrue claim as the vessel carried no arms or troops, and only 5,000 cases of cartridges. Though Germany formally apologized, the sinking was hailed by the German press, and a medal of commemoration was produced in its honor.
The loss of the Lusitania boosted calls for war among an American public divided on the nation’s then-policy of isolationism. With the resumption of unrestricted German submarine warfare and the release of the Zimmerman telegram that outlined Germany’s persuasion of Mexico to join the war against America in 1917, the first American troops landed in Europe that June.
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Groves, who was 68, was sailing third class on the Lusitania. Along with two brothers, he had owned substantial amounts of farmland near Sycamore.
George first came to the area around 1872. After his wife died in 1902, he returned to his native England, where he lived with a sister. However, he visited his brothers in Illinois frequently, crossing the Atlantic 14 times.
He was on the Lusitania after his most recent trip to Illinois, earlier that spring. The Sycamore True Republican reported he spent “four or five weeks” in March and April of 1915, “visiting his brothers and settling his financial matters.”
Groves left Sycamore on April 29, nine days before the sinking. The True Republican reported that “he carried with him a draft on London from a Sycamore bank” for over $9,000.
Loynd, who was listed as a “leather picker maker” in his native Bolton, England in 1891, later toured the world on missionary work. He had been in Chicago in 1896 before leaving for Africa. In 1903, he married his wife, Alice, who accompanied him on many of his missions, including to Canada.
He was back in Illinois in 1910-11, serving as a preacher in Thomson, along the Mississippi River in the northwestern part of the state.
Loynd apparently returned to Thomson in 1914 and also served a stint as pastor at the Deer Park Baptist Church southwest of Ottawa. He was described as standing 5 feet, 6 and a half inches tall, with gray hair and brown eyes.
The Loynds left Ottawa in early April 1915, spending three weeks at a mission in the eastern Indiana town of Richmond before leaving for New York.
They traveled as second-class passengers on the Lusitania. Some accounts state that the Loynds were thrown from the first lifeboat that was lowered from the foundering ship.
On May 26, a correspondent for the Streator Times wrote that “the many friends [of the Loynds] in this vicinity hope and trust they are in port by this time and well.”
Unfortunately, word had not yet reached Streator on the fate of the Loynds. David Loynd’s body had been located on May 21, 50 miles east of the disaster site. The body of his wife was also found and identified.
Both were buried in their native England. David was 51 years old, while Alice was 49.
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Another area casualty was Charles Ambrose Plamondon, who was born in Ottawa on Sept. 14, 1856, to a father who was a steel producer. It was a prosperous upbringing for Plamondon, though there was tragedy; the family lost their home in the Chicago Fire of 1871.
Charles followed his father as a captain of industry and was president of a national manufacturer of machinery. He later headed his father’s old firm as well. Charles also was vice president of the Chicago school system and was active in several civic groups.
The father of five children, Charles, and his wife, Mary, lived at 1344 Aster St. in Chicago. One area newspaper reported that the couple “are known to many” in Dixon, where they frequently visited a friend.
Charles was traveling with Mary on the Lusitania on business. None of the children, however, were on the ship. Newsreels of the day show the Plamondons arriving at the launch in a taxi.
In a diary, Charles described May 6, the day before the disaster, as “pleasant weather, sunshine all day.” Their bodies later washed up on the coast of Ireland.
Charles left an estate valued at $200,000. The estate was included in a massive settlement for American victims of the Lusitania, which was finally resolved by the German government in Washington in February 1924. The court ruled that the five Plamondon children were due a total of $70,000 from the German government as compensation for the disaster and the loss of their parents.
By comparison, Groves’ surviving brothers did not receive anything, as it was determined that he was not supporting them.
The Plamondon family seemed to have an unfortunate knack for being involved in major disasters. One of Charles’ daughters and a niece survived the massive Iroquois Theater fire in Chicago on Dec. 30, 1903, that claimed 602 lives, the deadliest single-building fire in American history.
One of his cousins, Edwin, and his wife, Susan, were on the Eastland, a steamer which capsized in Chicago Harbor with a loss of 844 lives on July 24, 1915, just 11 weeks after the Lusitania disaster. Susan was among the lost.
• Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Illinois. He may be reached at 217-710-8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.