Eugénie Lurette was born in Hermonville in the Marne on November 16, 1852 whose parents were winemakers.
So there was nothing to suggest that the woman who called herself Elise would travel a lot and live in luxury.
Her sister Eulalie married Félix Roulet, a Swiss who became the manager of the Communale d'Hermonville family. Thanks to Felix, whose cousin is coachman of the Spencer family, Elise enters the service of this illustrious and rich American family which would count in its ranks Winston Churchill and Lady Diana. Lady of the company, head of staff, she worked for thirty years for Lorillard and Sarah Spencer. Upon her well-deserved retirement, Elise agreed to accompany Loraillard’s son William and his wife Marie-Eugénie to New York.
On 10 April 1912 at Cherbourg, all three embarked in 1st class on the Titanic for its inaugural voyage. On the 15th, off the coast of Newfoundland, the ship, reputedly unsinkable, sank. 1,500 people perished in the icy waves.
Has the giant of the seas been the victim of the excessive pride and madness of men?
Local correspondent in Hermonville for L'Union, the author discovered in 2010 that a woman living in the village had survived the sinking of the Titanic. Fascinated by the exceptional destiny of this great lady, and assisted by her great-grandnephew, Claude ROULET, she wrote several articles on this subject and went to Cherbourg for the commemoration of the hundred years of the shipwreck.
Gilberte Touret lives in Hermonville, the native village of Elise Lurette, for whom she has a deep attachment. His roots are well anchored there since his mother came from the Picotin family, the oldest in this town.
After a start in telecommunications, Gilberte Touret studied law and obtained a licence. Literature, history and singing in the La Villanelle choral are his hobbies. A very active retiree, as she is also a municipal councillor of Hermonville.
