Amelia Behrens-Furniss

Last updated
Amelia Behrens-Furniss
Amelia Behren-Furniss in standard diving gear.png
Amelia Behrens-Furniss in the 1920s
Born
Amelia Bauer Florence Behrens

(1895-07-06)6 July 1895
New Jersey, USA
Died8 July 1970(1970-07-08) (aged 75)
Glendale, California, USA
Other namesAmelia Florence Behrens
Amelia Florence Behrens Musser
Florence Amelia Musser
Amelia Florence Musser
Amelia Florence Furniss
Amelia Furniss
Known for Deep-sea diving
Spouses
Guy Milton Musser
​
​
(m. 1913;div. 1921)​
Lawrence Furniss
​
​
(m. 1924;death 1969)​
Children5

Amelia Behrens-Furniss (b. New Jersey, 6 July 1895, d. California, 8 July 1970) was an American deep-sea diver. She was one of the first women to work on offshore oil rigs. [1] In 1921 she set a new endurance record by spending three hours underwater, while recovering tools that had been dropped. [2] She was inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame in 2012. [3]

Contents

Personal life

Amelia Bauer Florence Behrens was born to father, Captain Henry Behrens, from Denmark and mother, Amelia Miller, from New York. She had one sister, Dorothy. Behrens attended West Night High School, Cincinnati for stenography. [4]

She married Guy Milton Musser (1898-1931) at the age of 17 on 21 March 1913 in Los Angeles, California. Musser was a professional deep-sea diver, working for Behrens’ father. They had two children, born in 1914 and 1915. In 1919 she was convicted of bigamy, after proposing to, and marrying John Carter in San Francisco on 24 July that year. [5] As punishment, she was put on probation for a year and placed in the Salvation Army’s True Love Home (for unwed mothers, and the needy) in Los Angeles. [6] Carter, for his part, was given an “indeterminate sentence, not to exceed ten years”. Behrens’ final words to Carter before he was taken away were “Be sure and cut that moustache off before I see you again.” [7] In January 1920 Musser forgave her, after which she was “released from the True Love Home, in order that she might return to her husband and children.” [8]

In 1921 Musser was charged with battery of Behrens and her father after an altercation at the “back of the Venice bathhouse”. [9] She sued for divorce in August of the same year. [10]

She married Englishman Lawrence Furniss (1884-1969), a veteran of WWI, [11] on 19 December 1924 at Eagle Rock, Los Angeles. They had three children. [12]

In 1928 she was made to pay $167 to a chiropractor for a bill which she initially refused to settle, claiming the doctor “pressed his hand affectionately” during one of her visits.” [13]

Diving career

Behrens’ father, Captain Henry Behrens, ran a commercial diving business and diving bell exhibition on Venice Pier, where he taught Behrens and her sister to dive. [14] Before her marriage to Musser she was an exhibition diver. [15]

In 1921, in order to salvage some tools which had been dropped, she made five 45-foot descents down an oil well through a 24” casing, over the course of three hours. [16] The pipe was so narrow that she wasn't able to bend over to pick up the tools, so had to do everything “with her feet”. [17] She became wedged on the final dive, but, by “staying calm and keeping her wits about her”, she managed to free herself. The dive set a new endurance record for the longest time spent under water by anyone. [18] [ clarification needed ] Some expressed doubts as to whether her feat was genuine. Rig and Reel magazine went so far as to ask her father to provide verification. He duly provided evidence and the magazine published that he had done so “to our satisfaction.” Captain Behrens went on to comment that “Amelia…is…perfectly fearless and has complete confidence in herself in whatever she does.” [19]

On another dive she almost passed out when the crank operator, having had too much garlic over lunch, “leaned too close to the air supply”. [20]

The Amelia Behrens-Furniss Memorial

The Amelia Behrens-Furniss Memorial Hardhat Diver Training Grant is funded by her family and awarded by the Women Divers Hall of Fame, to provide financial assistance to women divers who are interested in learning more about hardhat diving. [21] [22]

WWII service

At the age of 47 Behrens-Furniss spent a year trying to enlist for war service before being accepted; being too old she was unable to join. The age of enlistment for women was raised in 1943, in part due to Behrens pleading directly with Eleanor Roosevelt and Oveta Culp Hobby about which Behrens-Furniss said “I sure worked hard enough for this. I wrote Mrs Roosevelt and Mrs Hobby both, asking them either to raise the age limit or to waive it in my case. I am certainly thrilled that they took me.” [23]

She served as a nurse with the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) from October 1943 for the next six years. [24] An article in Yank magazine read “Everybody in the Lawrence Furniss family except the cat is helping the war effort”, noting that even the family’s police dog Mickey was registered for service. [25] Her husband was with the US Engineers, her daughter was also in the WAC, both sons and son-in-law were in the US Navy. Behrens was quoted as saying, “Why, even the dog was accepted to Dogs for Defense before I made the grade.” [26] An accident meant she received a medical discharge in October 1949. She refused to accept a disability pension. Of her service she said, “I’ll treasure my WAC experience as long as I live.” [27]

Other activities

Film still of Behrens-Furniss appearing in The Perils of Pauline (1914) The Perils of Pauline. Chapter Seven 'The Tragic Plunge' from 1914 featuring Amelia Behrens-Furniss.png
Film still of Behrens-Furniss appearing in The Perils of Pauline (1914)

Behrens was also something of a daredevil. She performed wing walking feats and worked as a stunt woman in early films, including Chapter 7 The Tragic Plunge in Perils of Pauline (1914) . [28]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deep diving</span> Underwater diving to a depth beyond the norm accepted by the associated community

Deep diving is underwater diving to a depth beyond the norm accepted by the associated community. In some cases this is a prescribed limit established by an authority, while in others it is associated with a level of certification or training, and it may vary depending on whether the diving is recreational, technical or commercial. Nitrogen narcosis becomes a hazard below 30 metres (98 ft) and hypoxic breathing gas is required below 60 metres (200 ft) to lessen the risk of oxygen toxicity.

The National Association of Underwater Instructors is a nonprofit association of scuba instructors. It primarily serves as a recreational dive certification and membership organization established to provide international diver standards and education programs. The agency was founded in 1960 by Albert Tillman and Neal Hess. NAUI is headquartered in the Tampa, Florida area with dive and member instructors, resorts, stores, service and training centers located around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vicki Draves</span> American diver (1924–2010)

Victoria Manalo Draves was a Filipino American competitive diver who won gold medals in both platform and springboard diving at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. Draves became the first woman to be awarded gold medals for both the ten-meter platform and the three-meter springboard. Additionally, Draves became the first American woman to win two gold medals in diving, and the first Asian American to win Olympic gold medals. She was born in San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zale Parry</span> American pioneer scuba diver, underwater photographer and actress

Rosalia (Zale) Parry (1933-) is an American pioneer scuba diver, underwater photographer and actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foothill High School (Orange County, California)</span> Public school in Santa Ana, California , United States

Foothill High School is a public secondary school located in the unincorporated community of North Tustin, California. It has a mailing address of Santa Ana, but it is a part of the Tustin Unified School District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earle Williams</span> American actor

Earle Williams was an American stage actor and film star in the silent era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucile Lloyd</span> American muralist, decorative painter, illustrator

Lucile Lloyd, also known as Lucile Lloyd Brown, Lucila Lloyd Nulty was an American muralist, illustrator, and decorative painter. In 1937, Lloyd worked with the Works Progress Administration's Federal Arts Project to paint three murals in the assembly room in the state building in Los Angeles, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat McCormick (diver)</span> American diver (1930–2023)

Patricia Joan Keller McCormick was an American competitive diver who won both diving events at two consecutive Summer Olympics, in 1952 and 1956. She won the James E. Sullivan Award for best amateur athlete in the US in 1956 – the second woman to do so, after Ann Curtis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann May</span> American actress (1898–1985)

Ann Beatrice Sullivan, known professionally as Ann May, was a silent film star who appeared in motion pictures from 1919 to 1925.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gertrude Olmstead</span> American actress

Gertrude Olmstead was an American actress of the silent era. She appeared in 56 films between 1920 and 1929. Her last name was sometimes seen as Olmsted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Crlenkovich</span>

Helen Crlenkovich was one of the most successful athletes in America and the world on the three-meter springboard and the ten-meter platform. She was a Croatian American known to friends and family as "Klinky." Both of her parents were from Croatia: mother Anka Tomin was from Petrijevci, and father Adam from Banićevac near Cernik.

La Placita is a former settlement and the earliest community established in Riverside County, California, USA. The town was informally established soon after 1843 on the Santa Ana River, across from the town of Agua Mansa. La Placita and Agua Mansa were the first non-native settlements in the San Bernardino Valley. Together, they were referred to as "San Salvador", and were the largest settlements between New Mexico and Los Angeles in the 1840s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valerie Sutton</span> American dancer and inventor (born 1951)

Valerie Sutton is an American developer of movement notation and a former dancer.

Hillary Rika Hauser is an American photojournalist and environmental activist with a focus on the oceans — underwater diving adventure, politics, and conservation. In 2009, in recognition of her ocean environmental work as it relates to underwater diving, Hauser received the NOGI Award for Distinguished Service from the Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences. In 2013 the Academy elected Hauser as president of its board of directors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jill Heinerth</span> Canadian diver, writer and underwater filmmaker

Jill Heinerth is a Canadian cave diver, underwater explorer, writer, photographer and film-maker. She has made TV series for PBS, National Geographic Channel and the BBC, consulted on movies for directors including James Cameron, written several books and produced documentaries including We Are Water and Ben's Vortex, about the disappearance of Ben McDaniel.

Ann Sissons is a New Zealand diver and diving official.

Wendy Lian Williams is a retired American diver. She won a bronze medal in the 10 metres platform event at the 1988 Summer Olympics. Additional medals that Williams won include a gold at the 1989 FINA Diving World Cup and a bronze at the 1991 World Aquatics Championships. After ending her diving career in 1992, she worked for NBC as a sports commentator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manuela Budrow</span>

Manuela Valera Budrow (1876-1966), also known as Manuela Budrow Rafferty, was a Spanish-born American soprano, composer, and music educator based in Southern California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlotte Pierce</span> American actress

Charlotte Pierce was an American actress in silent films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women Divers Hall of Fame</span> International honor society.

The Women Divers Hall of Fame (WDHOF) is an international honor society. Its purpose is to honor the accomplishments of women divers, and their contributions to various fields of underwater diving. Full membership is restricted to nominees who have been found to meet the WDHOF's criteria, which include being an underwater diver and having contributed to diving in ways recognised as being significant.

References

  1. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Moder History Press. p. 7.
  2. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Moder History Press. p. 8.
  3. ↑ "2012 Amelia Behrens-Furniss". wdhof.org. Retrieved 2023-09-09.
  4. ↑ "Graduate list breaks record". Cincinnati Commercial Tribune. Cincinnati, USA. 1911-05-14. p. 8.
  5. ↑ "Asks clemency as she enters guiltly plea". Santa Ana Evening Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1919-08-25. p. 8.
  6. ↑ "True Love Home". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, USA. 1921-04-10. p. 10.
  7. ↑ "Husband forgives Ex-Diving maiden in bigamy case". Santa Ana Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1920-01-24. p. 8.
  8. ↑ "Husband forgives Ex-Diving maiden in bigamy case". Santa Ana Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1920-01-24. p. 8.
  9. ↑ "Beats diving girl once held in S. A." Santa Ana Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1921-07-25. p. 6.
  10. ↑ ""30" bulletins". Santa Ana Evening Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1921-08-01. p. 1.
  11. ↑ "Son joins navy as dog and mother end service". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, USA. 1944-10-10. p. 12.
  12. ↑ "Son joins navy as dog and mother end service". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, USA. 1944-10-10. p. 12.
  13. ↑ "Woman diver must pay $167 to chiropractor". Los Angeles Evening Express. Los Angeles, USA. 1928-10-19. p. 22.
  14. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Modern History Press. p. 7.
  15. ↑ "Beats diving girl once held in S. A." Santa Ana Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1921-07-25. p. 6.
  16. ↑ "Diving girl spends hours in oil well". Santa Ana Daily Register. Santa Ana, USA. 1921-10-26. p. 6.
  17. ↑ "Venice woman diver makes new record". Evening Vanguard. Los Angeles, USA. 1921-10-03. p. 1.
  18. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Moder History Press. p. 8.
  19. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Moder History Press. p. 9.
  20. ↑ Alexander, Carolyn Elayne (2004). Venice. Los Angeles, USA: Arcadia Press. p. 57.
  21. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Moder History Press. p. 9.
  22. ↑ Schlachter, Gail A (2017). Directory of financial aids for women 2017-2019. Boston, USA: AdmitHub. p. 337.
  23. ↑ "Mama joins the WACS". Evening Herald. Los Angeles, USA. 1943-11-09. p. 5.
  24. ↑ "Fighting Family joined in war by mother, 48". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, USA. 1943-10-10. p. 2.
  25. ↑ "Sherman Oaks, Calif". Yank (Vol. 1 No. 13 ed.). New York City, USA: United States Army. 9 November 1942. p. 11.
  26. ↑ "Wac, 48, has four of family in war service". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, USA. 1944-02-02. p. 2.
  27. ↑ "Son joins navy as dog and mother end service". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, USA. 1944-10-10. p. 12.
  28. ↑ Ponton, Rebecca (2019). Breaking the gas ceiling. Ann Arbor, USA: Modern History Press. p. 9.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.