She survived Titanic's catastrophic maiden voyage. Later, she told her harrowing story
Bertha Lehmann Luhrs described the Titanic disaster in a 1937 newspaper account, recalling the sinking, lifeboats and the loss of about 1,500 lives.
- On April 11, 1912, 17-year-old Bertha Lehmann Luhrs boarded the Titanic in Cherbourg, France, planning to visit family in Iowa. She survived the ship's sinking on April 15, 1912, an experience that caused her lifelong anguish.
- Before her departure, Luhrs' father expressed a grim premonition, stating, "I suppose I will never see you again." His fear of bad luck proved tragically accurate as his daughter encountered the disaster at sea.
- Luhrs described the Titanic, which measured more than 882 feet long, as a "floating palace." She recalled hearing "three loud reports" like thunder before the ship struck an iceberg, forcing her into a lifeboat.
- Following the tragedy, Luhrs married John Rudolph Zimmerman, who later died in World War I, then settled in Minnesota with second husband Carl Luhrs. Boats terrified her for life; she chose planes instead when traveling.
- To honor the 25th anniversary of the sinking, Luhrs wrote a detailed account for the Dec. 2, 1937, edition of the Brainerd Daily Dispatch. She died in 1967 at age 72, leaving behind her firsthand testimony.
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She survived Titanic's catastrophic maiden voyage. Later, she told her harrowing story
BRAINERD — More than a century later, the tragedy of the RMS Titanic continues to live on in infamy. For Bertha Lehmann Luhrs, though, the anguish of April 15, 1912, was real — as a Titanic survivor, she experienced it firsthand. Lehmann was 17 when the Titanic set sail. She traveled from her native Switzerland to France to board the ship, planning to visit her sister and brother-in-law in Iowa. To honor the 25th anniversary of the Titanic’s sin…
From the Vault: Pequot Lakes woman survived Titanic's catastrophic maiden voyage
BRAINERD — More than a century later, the tragedy of the RMS Titanic continues to live on in infamy. Fictionalized accounts of April 15, 1912, forever immortalize the fateful day on screen and in print by reimagining the trauma passengers experienced. For one Pequot Lakes resident, though, the anguish was real. Bertha Lehmann Luhrs’ story is one of firsthand experience. While she never lived to watch the story of Jack and Rose in the hit 1998 mo…
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