100 Years Ago Today-April 14, 1912-2012

100 years ago today was Titanic's last glimpse of daylight. It was the 16th birthday of 3rd class passenger Alfred Rush who got trousers for the occasion. Later the next morning, the sailors would try and get Alfred Rush into one of the last lifeboats on the ship. Alfred pulled back and said, "No! I'm staying here with the men!" Alfred stayed with the men and died like a man that night. It was Sunday, so the passengers had church services. 1st class passengers had services in the 1st class Dining Saloon officiated by Captain E.J. Smith. 2nd and 3rd class had their services in their Dining Saloons and officiated by priests and preachers who were passengers and had volunteered. That afternoon was lovely for a stroll and other recreational activities like exercise. At 5:50, Captain Smith heeded the ice warnings and changed the course to a more southerly route. Little did anyone realize that this decision would prove fatal. In the Marconi Room, Jack Phillips having fixed the machine with Harold Bride was back at the key, sending messages and receiving messages, some of them ice warnings from ships ahead. Suddenly, the Californian's ice warning came blasting through Phillips' headset. Phillips replied, "Shut up, shut up, I am working Cape Race." The Californian would play a large and shameful role in the sinking later. Dinner in 1st class was interesting. The Wideners had a party in honor Captain Smith whose voyage was to be his last before retiring. The party held the creme of the crop of American and British society including the Thayers, Astors, Strauses, J. Bruce Ismay, and some other notable people.

At 11:40 P.M., the Frederick Fleet and Reginald Lee high in the crow's nest spotted an enormous iceberg looming in the distance. Fleet saw it first and rang the bell 3 times. He then proceeded to call the Bridge. 6th Officer James Paul Moody answered the phone and said, "What do you see?" Frederick Fleet replied, "Iceberg dead ahead sir!" and Moody said, "Thank you." 1st Officer Murdoch now saw the iceberg and ordered Quartermaster Robert Hichens who was at the wheel to turn the wheel Hard a Starboard. Then he told the bridge to reverse the engines. The Titanic kept going slowly towards the iceberg. Then, she slowly but surely turned. The iceberg was too close and the iceberg scraped the side of the Titanic. She could float with 2-4 of her compartments flooded, but the iceberg opened up 5. The water came rushing into the Boiler Rooms and Mail Room. The mail clerks worked to get the mail to the next decks, trying to beat the rising water. Neither the mail nor the clerks survived the disaster. Captain Smith came onto the Bridge right after the iceberg struck and asked Murdoch, "What have we struck?" Murdoch answered, "An iceberg, sir." In the passenger areas, the men enjoying some last card games or cigars felt or heard what was going on, and came out on deck to see an enormous iceberg just behind them. Those inside that felt it said that it was a bump, a shudder, or a heave of the engines. Captain Smith sent for Thomas Andrews, the ship's chief designer and told the wireless operators to get ready to send the call for assistance. When Andrews got there, the two of them explored the damaged part of the ship. Thomas Andrews told Captain Smith that the ship would sink in an hour or two. Captain Smith then told the wireless operators to send the international call for help which was C.Q.D. Then Captain Smith told the stewards to arouse the passengers, get them to put on the lifebelts, and get them on deck. He then told the officers to ready the lifeboats for lowering. The 1st class passengers began congregating in the Lounge where it was warmer while the band assembled and started playing cheery ragtime music to keep the passengers calm. In the Marconi Room Jack Phillips at 12:07 contacted the Carpathia. The operator on the Carpathia rushed to the Bridge with the news. The officer thought he was joking and proceeded to force him off the bridge. The operator opened the door to the Captain's room and then the officer realized it was serious. The Captain, Rostron, made all possible speed for the Titanic. They would reach the site 4 hours later, too late for over 1,500 people. 5th Officer Harold Lowe had readied some of them and waited for orders to lower. Ismay came out and asked why the boats weren't being loaded and lowered. Lowe, not recognizing him, said that he hadn't been ordered to. Ismay went to the Bridge and asked Smith about it. The order then came to load and lower the lifeboats. The first lifeboat that was lowered had 12 where there was room for 40. Among these first survivors were the Duff Gordons whose behavior was wrongly subjected to criticism later. At 12:55 A.M., 4th Officer Boxhall launched the first white rocket which was supposed to be a call to those that could see them that they needed assistance. Several miles away, the Californian saw a big steamer firing rockets but did nothing. The Wireless Operator was asleep. At the time the first rocket was launched, Margaret Brown who helped put other women into the lifeboats was going to stay and see what was going on when a sailor picked her up and placed her into a lifeboat. Later, Hichens who was at the wheel when the iceberg and was now in charge of the lifeboat used fear like the possibility of the ship sucking them down to motivate the rowers. Later, he wouldn't go back to the people in the water because he feared that those in the water would capsize the boat. Brown tried to get them to go back, but most of those in the boat wouldn't.

Titanic Survivor Accounts

Titanic Survivors: What They Saw

Titanic Survivors: What they Saw 2

(Above is the accounts of Joseph Boxhall, Eva Hart, Ruth Becker, and Edith Haisman)

Ruth Becker account

Marjorie Newell Account

Millvina Dean Story

Survivors on the "A Night To Remember Set"

Above in "A Night To Remember Set", the people seen are Lawrence Beasely, Edith Russell, Edmund Navatril, and Frank Goldsmith. The others, I can't identify.

Survivor's Voices

Edith Russell Account

Survivor Accounts

Charles Lightoller Account

A Night To Remember: The Movie

The movie called A Night to Remember was made in 1958. It was directed by William McQuitty, and co directed by Walter Lord, the book that it's based off of. It is in my mind, the most accurate Titanic drama movie of all time. It begins with the launch, which has one of the few innacurate parts of the movie. it has a woman christening the Titanic, although the ship never was christened. The footage of the Titanic going down the gantry way into the sea, is actually the Queen Elizabeth. Next, they show the people from all lives leaving their homes along with their homes and friends, to go to America. After that, comes the main character of the movie, Charles Lightoller played by Kenneth More. We next go down to the docks where they introduce the other main characters of the ship, Thomas Andrews played by Micheal Goodliffe, J. Bruce Ismay played by Frank Lawton, and Captain Edward Smith played by Laurence Naismith. They show the Titanic leaving, using footage of the Titanic's sister ship, Olympic. The next scenes are of a ship that was about to be scrapped, that they bought and made into the hull of the ship. The scenes of the full Titanic, are actually an 11 foot model, and could be made to look like the actual thing, with it being in black and white. The sets were built with the greatest detail that the designers could use, that would be closest to the original, and they used the plans and photographs to create the sets. The people were dressed in period clothes, and they even brought survivors in, to see the sets and watch the production. Joseph Boxhall the 4th officer of the Titanic served as technical advisor. The passengers on the sets were Edith Russell, Lawrence Beasely, and several others. Mrs. Lightoller the wife of Charles Lightoller, came too. The survivors would walk around the boat decks, corridors, cabins, bridge, and engine room, lost in memories of their experiences. When they had Thomas Andrews in the Smoking Room, awaiting his fate, the place would creak and groan as the tilt grew. It was very dramatic, and you can hear it in the movie. They actually had the end of the movie where everyone is in the lifeboats of the water, in a lake during the winter. They did use precautions, and no one got hypothermia. The movie became the most popular movie of the decade. When the young survivors saw it, they were reminded a lot of their fathers, lost in the disaster. It's because of this that when Ms. Millvina Dean was invited to have a private viewing of the 1997 version with Prince Charles of Wales, she refused because she couldn't bear another movie like that. The movie had made Captain Stanley Lord, the captain of the Californian, a lazy man that didn't care about the ship that was firing white rockets. It has been unproven, and Captain Lord's family was quite upset. This movie was liked by most survivors however, and the audiences have loved it. If you are wanting to see the 1997 version but you don't want to watch it because of a few bad parts in it, try this movie. It's far better, and more accurate.b

The Author of a Legend

Walter Lord was born on October 8, 1917 in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1939, he graduated from Princeton University and tried to get into Yale, but he joined the army after Pearl Harbor. He was made a code clerk in London, and graduated from Yale with a degree in law after WWII ended. Lord wrote 13 bestselling books. They were Day of Infamy, Incredible Victory, A Time to Stand, Peary to the Pole, Good years from 1900 to the First World War, The Past that would not Die, his greatest work A Night to Remember, and The Night Lives On. From what I know, Walter Lord after writing A Time to Stand about The Alamo, he actually discovered the long lost flag from the battle in the Mexican archives. While writing about A Night to Remember and The Night Lives On about the Titanic, he tracked down 63 living survivors in order to get their stories of the sinking and afterward. In 1958, William McQuitty decided to do a movie using A Night to Remember's name and facts. It tells the story minute-by-minute through the eyes of Kenneth More playing 2nd Officer Charles Lightoller, and going through the bravery of Thomas Andrews, Captain Smith, the true story of Ismay, the Strausses, and many others. The sets were built using the original blueprints and designs, and they had survivors including Lawrence Beasely, and Edith Russell. It remains to this day as the most accurate movie today. Walter Lord acted as technical adviser along side with survivor 4th Officer Joseph Boxhall. Walter Lord became known also for is vast collection in things that survivors from the Titanic had given him, and original pictures. Among those things was a musical toy pig from Edith Russell that she played in the lifeboat in order to comfort the children. In 1997, after years of speaking and signing autographs, he helped James Cameron in his movie, Titanic. Walter Lord died on May 19, 2002 at the age of 84 after battling Parkinsons for years. He was buried in a family plot in Green Mountain Cemetery.

Joseph Boxhall

Joseph Groves Boxhall was born on March 23, 1884 in Hull, Yorkshire. He was the second child of Captain Joseph and Mariam Boxhall. He had three sisters (one of whom died in infancy. His father was a respectable man of the Wilson Line. Boxhall only had only 4 years as apprentice before he was a full fledged sea-man. On June 2, 1899, he was on his first ship for the William Thomas Line. He did quite well and in 1907, he joined the White Star Line. He served on the Oceanic and the Arabic before being transferred to the TITANIC as the fourth officer at the age of 28.

Boxhall assisted in the TITANIC's sea trials of which took place on April 4, 1912. He was considered a junior officer so he assisted passengers and crew when he could and was sometimes even at the wheel. The only officer known to him prior to thw TITANIC was 2nd officer Lightoller from the Oceanic. Boxhall was off-duty when the iceberg struck. He heard the bell from the crow's nest struck three times which means that something is in the way of our course. He got to the Wheelhouse just after the collision and Captain Smith was already there. He ordered Boxhall to take a look at the damage. He found none but while in the Mail-room, he said that he could hear water flooding but couldn't see it so he reported to the Bridge. After that, he went and told Lightoller and 3rd officer Pitman to report to the bridge. Soon, the carpenter and mail-clerk reported flooding. They all now realized that the ship was doomed. Boxhall took charge of the distress rockets and morse lamp signals. He also calculated the ship's position for the wireless telegraph. He was in the chart room when he saw J. Bruce Ismay standing in the door way. Boxhall walked up to him and Ismay asked him why he hadn't gotten into a lifeboat. Boxhall replied by saying that he had not been ordered to enter a lifeboat. Boxhall went to the port side and watched Chief Officer Wilde lowering a boat. Captain Smith came up to him and ordered him to get into the boat. Boxhall stepped in and was put in charge of Boat No. 2 which was only about 2/3 full. He is depicted in the movie as saying "Bloody pull faster and pull!" as the stern rises. Boxhall never saw the TITANIC sink. He wanted to go back and rescue those in the water but he was immediately over-ruled by the 20 passengers in his boat. He later came aboard the rescue ship Carpathia and after being set ashore, was very informational in the U.S. Senate Inquiries and the British Inquiries.

After getting back to England, he was fourth officer on the Adriatic but that was short lived because he joined the Royal Navy Reserves. He was later a sub-lieutenant and was then promoted to Lieutenant after WWI. He married Marjory Beddells in 1919 and unfortunately never had a child. He was later a merchant and then joined the Cunard Line and he rose in rank to Chief Officer but was never captain. He served as Chief Officer on the Berengaria, Auquitania, Ausonia, Scythia, Antonia, and Franconia.

After retiring 1940 after 41 years at sea, he served as technical advisor for the movie A Night to Remember. He also had close friends that were officers aboard the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. Joseph Boxhall died on April 25, 1967 at the age of 84 on Cebral Thombrosis. Upon his last request, his ashes were scattered over where he calculated the TITANIC was on that fateful night.