"Woman to swim the channel", reverse of press photo

Woman to swim the channel

Label on reverse of photo d24401; “Woman to swim the Channel – Mrs Willing about to start on a practice swim. She has grown tired of waiting for the Channel to acquire its normal summer temperature and is determined to make her effort to swim to France as soon as possible she has been anticipated by Mrs Arthur Hamilton.”

Mrs Hilda Willing swam from Shakespeare Beach on the 3rd September 1920 but did not get to France, finishing 6-8 miles from France after 10 hours 35 minutes (reported as 7h 44m in the Across the Straits Booklet).

Hilda was a war widow. Her husband was killed in 1916 at the Battle of Jutland, on Board the H.M.S. Indefatigable. She taught over 2000 ladies to swim.

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