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Widow of Shenandoah Chief "Spunky" Figure
Boston Post 11/22/25

Pretty Mrs. Lansdowne Wins Sympathy of Naval Board by Courage on Grill---Her Romance

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Mrs. Zachary Lansdowne, storm centre of the Shenandoah inquiry.

By Bettie Larimore
Washington, D.C., Nov. 21.

Mrs. Margaret Ross Lansdowne, widow of the commander of the ill-fated Shenandoah, finds herself in the unfortunate position of fighting single-handed the entire United States navy. Unwittingly she has been thrust into the midst of the controversy raging around the army and navy heads.

The young widow, whose appearance on the witness stand creates such pleasure among spectators wearied of looking upon uniforms, is only 23. She is very tall, slim and girlish. Her thick brown hair is bobbed and banged in the latest style. Her skin is fair, and freckled slightly by a healthy outdoor life. Her eyes are large, gray, heavily fringed by black lashes. She dresses entirely in black. Altogether she is a lovely figure, and one which should inspire pity and sympathy even in the breasts of a so serious a body as the General Board of the Navy.

Mrs. Lansdowne's poise has been unshaken by the terrible grilling she has undergone at the Shenandoah board of inquiry, even by the death of her husband under such tragic circumstances.

Margaret Lansdowne's life has been far from pleasant the last three months. Shortly after the burial of her husband, her 3-year-old daughter, Peggy, underwent an operation. And, in between, she has been testifying, testifying, testifying, in an endeavor to uphold the fair name of the late Zachary Lansdowne. 

Bulldog Her Companion

Nowadays one can see Mrs. Lansdowne walking around the parks of Washington with her pure white English bull, Barney. She meets all visitors with a courteous and frank smile, and shows no traces of the troubles that have accumulated upon her bobbed head. 

Mrs. Lansdowne comes from a navy family. Her grandfather, Rear Admiral Albert Ross, 79 years old, is retired and living at Cocoanut Grove, Florida. In the winter he is dean of the Culver Military Academy at Culver, Indiana. 

Her mother, now Mrs. Cox of South Carolina, is a Virginian, and a Kennedy, and Margaret was born on the Kennedy estate, Cassilis, at Warrenton, Virginia. Mrs. Lansdowne spent her childhood in New York City, but after her father's death came to Washington to live, and went to the National Cathedral School for Girls. 

Romance in Washington

When she finished school she made a quiet debut, as her mother was in heavy mourning. It was in Washington, during the winter social season, that she met Commander Lansdowne and married him. Reports that the Lansdowne match was a wartime romance, fostered in France, are unfounded. Mrs. Lansdowne has traveled in France, but she was far too young to have engaged in war work there.

Commander Zachary Lansdowne and Miss Margaret Ross were married in 1921 in the Bethlehem Chapel of the National Cathedral by Bishop Harding. The wedding was small, but very fashionable, and created much interest here in Washington. 

Shortly after their marriage, Commander Lansdowne was detailed as naval attache at the embassy in Berlin. They were there for 18 months, and Peggy, their daughter, was born there. Mrs. Lansdowne greatly enjoyed her life amid the social functions in the marble buildings of the Wilhelmstrasse. 

After their duty in Berlin was ended, the Lansdownes came back to Washington and in February, 1924, after the commander of the Shenandoah was relieved of his duty following that "Daughter of the Stars" action in breaking away from her moorings, Commander Zachary was ordered to Lakehurst to the command of the Shenandoah.

Now Mrs. Lansdowne is in Washington, alone, and there she will remain until she has time to formulate plans for her future. She is staying with her aunt and uncle, Dr. and Mrs. William Beverly Mason. Dr. Mason is a prosperous and reputable doctor, who lives in a big redstone house next to that of Alice Roosevelt Longworth and Speaker "Nick."

Mrs. Lansdowne's mother, Mrs. Cox, just came up from South Carolina to be with her daughter. "Baby Peggy" is also here with her mother, a tiny little girl with hair bobbed just like her mother's, not in the least depressed or worried by events so disturbing to her elders.

Mrs. Lansdowne has a stepson, Falkland MacKinnon Lansdowne, who is 10 years old. He is now at the Stuyvesant School for Boys at Warrenton, Va. He is an athletic boy, much interested in football, but it is too soon to say whether he will follow his distinguished father's footsteps and enter the navy.

When Mrs. Lansdowne first appeared before the Shenandoah court of inquiry she was the first woman to appear before a court of that kind. Heavily clad in mourning, she merely read a prepared statement and was excused by the court. Her next appearance was before the Mitchell court-martial, and there, too, she was the first woman to testify. This time she had discarded her heavy veil, and wore a smart black felt hat, cut away from her face. 

Young, pretty and appealing, she drew a slow, admiring smile from the entire courtroom. Led by the gallant Colonel Mitchell, every man in the courtroom rose as she entered. She smiled at the court in general, and was welcomed by Mrs. Mitchell as an old friend.

As the lovely widow began her statements in a clear, low voice, the blase reporters sat up and took notice for the first time for days of the long trial. The army showed itself superior to the navy in courtesy, because as Mrs. Lansdowne finished her testimony, the court arose as a body, when she passed out of the room. Nor did the so-called hard-boiled generals of the court-martial flay Mrs. Lansdowne with endless questions, as did their navy brothers.

Mrs. Lansdowne has always shown herself considerate of the press, as of everyone else. Since she has put her tangled affairs in the hands of counsel, she can no longer give out interviews. Her lawyer, Joseph Davies, is a close personal friend of General "Billy" Mitchell and his wife.

Margaret Ross Lansdowne is direct and modern. She is never vague nor insincere. She has a character and personality, and inspires and gives deep affections. Her youth and gaiety are infectious. She has never gone out for sports, but is fond of dancing and walking.