The Widow Doomship

 Guest Post by Alexa Safer

My Twitter reenactment character is the Widow Doomship. She is a fictional composite character. Her Twitter handle is @Widow_Doomship. I imagine her being born in New York in 1819, getting married in 1838 to a young ship hand named Amadeus Doomship, and having her first child, @Captain_Doomship, in 1840. She moved to Milwaukee in the summer of 1849 with her husband and her first 4 children. She is a devout Catholic and has 5 children with Amadeus. He eventually rose in the ranks to become a captain but drowned during the storm of 1869. The storm and resulting death of her husband had a profound impact on her life. I imagine her being very nervous about her eldest son risking his life in the same way her husband did. Her outlook will be hopeful but also reflect the magnitude of her loss. Her relationship with @Captain_Doomship will offer an element of personal interaction. She will represent how everyday people’s lives were affected by the weather and how they may have reacted to the new storm alert system.