[Essay] Journey Aboard Titanic

I acquired this small journal from a local bookshop in Liverpool, England. Its hand bound leather cover caught my eye. When I heard of the grand Titanic I immediately bought two first-class tickets for my wife and I. They were to be a wedding anniversary present for the two of us. Her maiden voyage would take us to America for the first time and I was not going to miss the chance to see The Statue of Liberty.

10:30am Wednesday, April 10^th, 1912

I looked up at the great monster of a ship before me. How could a ship this big be “unsinkable”? The rudder was as big as an elm tree and the propellers, as big as windmills. From reading brochures on the ship I learned that she was 882ft. long, with 9 decks, and was the largest ship in the world. She had four (62ft. high) smoke stacks, one of which was a fake that was only built to enhance the ships appearance. After we boarded the Titanic I immediately ascended the 5-story high Grand Staircase with its polished oak paneling and gold-plated crystal chandeliers. Intricate carvings adorned its walls and on the top landing of the staircase a clock was mounted in a carving showing “honor and glory crowning time”. The roof of the staircase was a large glass dome built to let in natural light.

8:00pm Wednesday, April 10^th, 1912

We finally entered our large stateroom to find it embellished with heavy carpet, wood paneling, and the best quality furniture for 1912. The room featured a sitting room, two bedrooms, two wardrobe rooms, and a private bath and lavatory as did the other 27 1^st-class rooms. Our room had been set up for us, with all our belongings safely put away. A bottle of champagne lay on a small table. That night my wife and I enjoyed a delicious fireside dinner in our room. I did have to do a bit of exploring in the ship. After walking down a few staircases and threw narrow hallways, I soon found myself in the 3^rd class quarters. But I did not stop there. I was still curious! I discovered that single men slept in the bow, single women in the stern and families together. The people here were poor but they seemed happy to be on such a grand ship as this. I retreated to my first class stateroom and had myself a good night’s sleep.

9:00pm Friday, April 12^th, 1912

On Friday night my wife and I joined the White Star Line president, J. Bruce Ismay, for dinner in the Dining Saloon. He boarded the ship to make sure all the passengers were comfortable. As I looked through the elaborate leaded glass windows I realized how privileged I was to be on this grand ship. I enjoyed a meal of Duck l’orange and le petit salad. Mr. Ismay and I then retreated to the smoking room and my wife, to the Concert room. We enjoyed a smoke and a game of cards. The room was embellished in rich mahogany with inlaid mother-of-pearl. It also featured hand painted and stained glass windows. Mr. Ismay told me much about the ship. Titanic’s captain was a man named Edward J. Smith who was planning to retire after this maiden voyage. It was to be a perfect tribute to a long and successful career. He even told me that the dining saloon, where we ate dinner in that night, was the largest room on the ship. This white paneled room was 100ft. in length.

10:00pm Sunday, April 14^th, 1912

Invitations were given to all first class passengers for a dance that was held in the grand ballroom. My wife and I graciously accepted. As we danced under the elaborate chandelier that hung over head, I almost forgot that we were on a ship. As the small band played Beethoven’s fifth symphony we sampled a bit of caviar and escargots. It was like a dream but with all good dreams, it would have to end soon. We would soon be arriving in New York City, NY. Family members would be awaiting our arrival.

12:15pm Monday, April 15^th, 1912

The sudden stop of the buzzing propellers woke me. It became dead quiet until I heard a scream of a woman saying the ship had hit an iceberg. I thought nothing of it because I had begun to believe Titanic really was unsinkable. But I did want to see what all the fuss was about. As I stepped onto the d-deck, I saw a few younger 3^rd class passengers playing with the ice that had fallen on the ship. My wife and I were given life jackets and we were ordered to wear them. At 1:30 we were separated in a crowd and put onto separate lifeboats.

2:20am Monday, April 15^th, 1912

From my lifeboat I watched the great ship “Titanic” sink beneath the ocean. It took with her men, women and even whole families. We were now in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with no way of contacting others for help. But at 5:30 our small lifeboat sighted a ship. As we got closer we realized it was the Cunard Line’s Carpathia. We boarded the ship and I met up with my wife. We could have been separated forever. We soon arrived in New York at 9:00pm on Thursday, April 18^th. The Carpathia had rescued 705 people along with two dogs between 4:10-8:10am. My heart went out to the families who were left waiting on the docks for loved ones. Little did they know that they would never be seen again?