Who was Mrs Annie Louisa Meek?

Mrs Annie Louisa Meek, born Annie Louisa Rowley, was a 32 (thirty-two) year-old English passenger who tragically lost her life in the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912. A mother of two young boys, Annie was embarking on a journey to the United States to work as a cook, hoping to provide for her family after being abandoned by her husband.

Early Life and Family

Annie Louisa Rowley was born in early 1880 in Bristol, Gloucestershire, England. She was the daughter of George Rowley, an English railway servant born in 1831 in Sharpwick, Somerset, and Matilda Ann Llewellyn, a Welsh woman born in 1849 in Narberth, Pembrokeshire. Her parents had married in Gloucestershire in 1873.

Annie had two known siblings:

Edward (born 1878)
Albert (born 1883)

Childhood and Relocations

The Rowley family’s early years were marked by several relocations:

1881: The family lived at 13 Wellesley Street, Barton Regis, Bristol.
1891: They moved to Wales, settling in Whitchurch, Glamorganshire, at a residence called “Wenalt.”
1901: While the family remained at “Wenalt,” Annie had moved out to work as a live-in cook at 7 Palace Road, Llandaff, Glamorgan.

Marriage and Family Life

In 1905, Annie married Howard Martin Meek, a general servant born in 1884 in Bristol. The couple had two sons:

Edwin Howard (born 1905)
Arthur Ninian (born 1910)

The 1911 census shows the family living at 2 Windsor Place in Penarth near Cardiff, with Howard working in a motor garage.

What led Annie to board the Titanic?

Tragically, Howard Meek abandoned his wife and children sometime after 1911. Left to provide for her two young sons alone, Annie made the difficult decision to seek employment in the United States as a cook. This led her to book passage on the ill-fated RMS Titanic, leaving her children in the care of their grandparents.

Annie’s Titanic Journey

Detail	Information
Embarkation	Southampton
Date	April 10, 1912
Class	3rd Class
Ticket Number	343095
Ticket Cost	£8, 1s

Annie boarded the Titanic in Southampton on April 10, 1912. Tragically, she did not survive the sinking on April 15, 1912. Her body, if recovered, was never identified.

The Aftermath: Care for Annie’s Sons

Following the tragedy, the Lord Mayor of Cardiff took action to support Annie’s orphaned sons:

He obtained support from local and national fund reliefs.
The boys’ education was paid for by the Titanic Relief Fund.

Family Legacy

Annie’s untimely death had a profound impact on her family:

Her father died just months after her, in the latter half of 1912.
Her mother lived until 1932, passing away in Cardiff.

The Lives of Annie’s Sons

Edwin Howard Meek:

Married Beatrice M. White in 1927
Had a daughter named Jean
Died in Birkenhead in 1969

Arthur Ninian Meek:

Married Dorothy M. Scott (1909-1985)
Had two children: Vivian and Gladys
Worked in the merchant service
Tragically died at sea aboard the Demeterton on February 3, 1949, at the age of 39 (thirty-nine)

What became of Howard Meek?

After abandoning his family, Howard Meek’s life took several turns:

He settled in Canada following the Titanic disaster.
On June 20, 1912, he remarried to Emma Charlotte Llewellyn, a native of Liverpool, in Toronto.
The couple eventually returned to England, settling in Coventry, Warwickshire.
Howard Meek passed away on August 25, 1953, in Coventry.

Annie Louisa Meek’s story serves as a poignant reminder of the personal tragedies behind the Titanic disaster. Her sacrifice in seeking a better life for her children, only to perish in one of history’s most famous maritime disasters, underscores the human cost of the Titanic’s sinking and the resilience of those left behind.