Mary Eloise was born to West Virginia Congressman James A. Hughes and Belle Vinson Hughes. Due to the nature of her father's work she spent a great deal of her childhood in Washington D.C. She caught the attention of Mr. Lucian Philip Smith during her society debut in January 1912. The couple were married on February 8. Their honeymoon was planned to encompass Egypt, the Middle East and Europe. The couple arranged to return early, probably becuase Mary had fallen pregnant. 

They booked first class passage on the Titanic from Cherbourg.

On the Sunday evening, after dinner in the Café Parisian, she retired to their cabin while Lucian played bridge with other passengers Alfred Fernand Omont, Pierre Maréchal and Paul Chevré. Lucian woke his wife after the collision and "leisurely" informed her "We are in the north and have struck an iceberg.  It does not amount to  anything, but will probably delay us a day getting into New York.   However, as a matter of form, the Captain has ordered all ladies on  deck."

Eloise approached Captain Smith on the boat deck asking if her husband could board a lifeboat with her. He reiterated his orders of "Women and children first!" She escaped the doomed liner aboard lifeboat 6, her husband perished. She gave birth to Lucian Philip Smith II in November 1912. It was an extraordinary year for the young Eloise, making her society debut, becomig engaged, getting married, surviving a huge maritime disaster, becoming a widow and then a mother. 

On August 18 1914 she married another Titanic survivor, Robert William Daniel. They divorced in 1923. She would go on to remarry twice more before returning to her first married name of Smith.

Eloise passed away in 1940, attributed to a heart attack.