On April 10, 1912 one of the largest and sleekest transatlantic liners of its time set sail from the port of Southampton, England, carrying the hopes and dreams of 2,240 passengers on board. Unfortunately, more than half of the passengers lost their lives in one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century
The Titanic carried a total of 20 lifeboats: 14 standard wooden ones with a capacity of 65 people each and four with wooden bottoms and folding canvas sides with a capacity of 47 people each.
Unfortunately, after the fatal collision with an iceberg at 23:40 on the evening of April 14, panic and despair prevailed. The ship’s crew was not adequately trained to perform an evacuation. Officials don’t know how many people can safely get aboard the lifeboats and release many only half full.
And third-class passengers are largely left to their own devices, with many trapped below decks until the ship fills with water. Women and children first protocol is followed when evacuating passengers on lifeboats and most male passengers and crew are left to wait on board. As a result, only 20 percent of men survive.
On board the Titanic there is over 100 children, of which one child from the first class died, and the number of children who died from the third class was 52. First class passengers had the highest survival rate at 62%, followed by second class at 41%. Only 25% of third class passengers are saved.
We tell the stories of three women who travel in first class and are some of the most respected and wealthy ladies aboard the Titanic. For various reasons, each of them fails (or refuses) to save herself on one of the boats and becomes one of the thousands of victims of the disaster.
It may sound strange to you that a person would give up salvation on his own at such a terrible time. So today we reveal what made them do this.
Ida Strauss: The Devoted Wife
The story of Isidore and Ida Strauss and their unbreakable bond is so moving that James Cameron paid tribute to them in the 1997 film Titanic, showing an elderly couple hugging each other in bed, awaiting death.
Ida Strauss was born in Germany in 1849. She was the wife of Macy’s department store co-owner Isidore Strauss and was a popular and beloved lady in New York society. She is known for her kindness and generosity. The couple has seven children.
Isidore and Ida traveled with their maid Ellen Bird and their 15-year-old granddaughter Beatrice Strauss to Europe in early 1912. Beatrice remained in Germany, and the family made the fateful decision to return to New York on the modern new ship Titanic. The husbands are some of the most prominent and wealthy passengers on board.
On the night of the sinking, Isidore and Ida Strauss were seen standing near lifeboat 8 in the company of their maid, Ellen Byrd. Although the officer in charge of the lifeboat was willing to allow the elderly couple to board it with Miss Byrd, Isidore Strauss refuses to bail out while there are still women and children on board.
He urges his wife to come up, but she refuses, saying, “We have lived together for so many years. Where you go, I go.” Then Ida Strauss takes off her fur coat and hands it to her maid. Ellen gets into lifeboat 8 at Strauss’ insistence and is rescued.
Ida’s words were relayed by the people already in Lifeboat No. 8, as well as many others who were on deck at the time. Isidore and Ida Strauss are last seen alive on deck, sitting on two deckchairs, holding hands as a huge wave sweeps them out to sea.
When the survivors of the disaster arrived in New York aboard the Carpathia, many, including Ellen Byrd, told reporters of Mrs. Strauss’s loyalty and faithfulness to her husband.
Years later, one of the couple’s granddaughters, Jessica, explained: “They were in their 60s, had been together for a long, long time and had several children together. Ida would not go anywhere without her husband. We believe Isidore was offered a place on another lifeboat, but he also chooses not to go without his wife.’
Isidore Strauss’ body was found and buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, in the Bronx, New York. Unfortunately, Mrs. Strauss’ body was never found.
Bess Waldo Allison: The Desperate Mother
Bess was born in Wisconsin in 1886 and her husband was Hudson Allison. In 1909, the couple’s first child, Helen Lorraine Allison, was born. In 1911, their son Hudson Trevor was born. In 1912, Bess traveled with her two children and husband aboard the Titanic, where they joined family friends. At that time she was only 25 years old. Their employees – maids, butler, nanny – travel in second class.
On the last evening of her life, Bess and her husband dined with Major Arthur Godfrey Puchen and Harry Markland Molson. When the Titanic hits the iceberg, their son’s nanny Alice Cleaver panics and takes the baby, noticing how Trevor and Bess weren’t fazed at all by the incident. At some point, however, Bess notices Trevor’s absence and starts looking for him.
After the panic sets in, Bess is put on a boat with her daughter Lorraine, but she refuses to leave the ship without her baby. So he pulls his daughter out of the boat and starts looking for Trevor.
Major Arthur Godfrey Puchen was placed in lifeboat 6 because there were not enough sailors. He remembers that Mrs. Allison was directed to look for her child and husband on the other side of the ship. In his words, “…someone told her that Mr. Allison was in a boat going down on the other side of the deck. Apparently she made it, only to find that Mr. Allison wasn’t there…”
When Major Peuchen sees her for the last time, “she was falling from the half sunken ship.”
The Alisons never manage to pull themselves together and find their baby in the chaos of the sinking ship and therefore fail to save themselves. Nanny Alice Cleaver and toddler Trevor survive by escaping in a lifeboat.
Bess died on the night of April 15, 1912, and her body, if found, has never been identified. Young Trevor is the only surviving member of the family.
Edith Evans: the most selfless sacrifice
Edith Evans was born in 1875 in Philadelphia to a wealthy family. On April 10, 1912, she boarded the Titanic to return home from a family funeral in England. On board she was often seen in the company of her relatives Caroline Brown, Charlotte Appleton and Malvina Helen Cornell.
When the lifeboats are first launched, Edith and Caroline Brown fail to reach one in time. At 1:55 in the morning, the two make it to the next one. However, it is believed that there was not enough space in the boat. Edith convinces Caroline to come in because, unlike her, she has children waiting for her at home. Despite her protest, Caroline ends up taking the seat.
Surviving passenger Walter Lord stated in his 1955 book that the boat was simply hastily lowered before Evans could enter. It is also believed that the last lifeboat lowered from the sinking ship was not fully filled. There were only about 30 people on board, while it was designed to hold 47.
It is not known if Edith Evans deliberately stepped aside before the boat was lowered. What is known is that the 37-year-old woman went down with the ship.
She was last seen running across the deck to board a boat, probably because one of the others gets flipped over. Witnesses say she managed to get into one, but fell and died of hypothermia.
Edith was never identified among the bodies found. On April 22, 1912, in the church “St. Grace’ in New York, a memorial service was held for her and a plaque was erected in her honor.
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2024-02-12 09:00:00
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