TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cyril Evans (Titanic) by Molly Lemmer
Famous in the 20s by Amanda Meek
The What If? (Titanic) by Nicole Obaid
Life of Lincoln by Joelle Doye
Cyril Evans by Molly Lemmer
Cyril Furmstone Evans, wireless operator of the Californian, was 20 years old in April 1912 when news of the Titanic disaster gripped the world. And he was right in the middle of it. The Californian became known as the “mysterious ship” and “the ship that stood still” and every crew member’s actions were mulled over.
Evans was born in Crowden, a suburb of London, but the family moved to Liverpool soon after. He grew up quietly, studying at the Marconi Training School in Liverpool and the British School of Telegraphy in Clapham, London directly out of grammar school. It took him ten months to complete the certification (the average was five). Evans landed his first appointment on the liner Cedric in late 1911. He left after only one run. No reason was given, but his decision to go back to London might have been sped up by the arrival of a letter around Christmas time that was said to have been “personal and very upsetting.” Next, was Evans first run on the Californian on January 21, 1912. A wireless shack had just been installed in the tramp ship, so this was to be their first trip with the new, up-to-date technology. (The set was still relatively weak as far as apparatus go. Titanic having the strongest one afloat.) The Californian was on it’s way to Boston from London (Evans’ third run) when the Titanic disaster occurred.
Typical passenger traffic had passed between the ships during the day of April 14. Nothing noteworthy or unusual. The Californian warned of ice at 9 a.m., but Titanic (Harold Bride at the set) didn’t write it down till thirty minutes later. He over heard the same message being sent to a different ship in the area and tapped “Already got it. bi” when Evans began to resend it to Titanic hoping for a “message received” this time. As he was turning in for the night at 11:30 p.m.--having been at the set since 7:30 a.m. with minimal breaks--Third Officer Groves came in to ask who he had ‘gotten’ that day.
“Only the Titanic,” Evans answered, already dressed for bed.
“Tell them we’re stopped and surrounded by ice.” He sat back down at the set, listening for a moment as Jack Phillips worked Cape Race. He broke in when he heard a lull in the traffic. “I say, old man, we are stopped and surrounded by ice.”
The Californian’s signal “came in with a bang” to Titanic, only 19 miles away, and an angry Phillips tapped back:
“Shut up! Shut up! I am working Cape Race! Keep off. You are jamming me.”
Evans shut down his set and went to sleep. The next morning, at around 3 a.m., one of the officers came in and woke him up, asking to see what was going on and explaining about a ‘mystery ship’ they had seen late the night before but disappeared around 2. Evans threw on a pair of trousers and hurried to his set. After inquiring several times to the Carpathia, which refused to answer, the Frankfurt finally blurted the news: “Haven’t you heard? The Titanic sunk this morning around 2.” Evans took the news to the bridge and the Californian made their way to the scene of the disaster.
They stopped along-side the rescue ship and Evans continued to try to get information. Most of the other ships in the area told him to “keep off” and they threatened to report him for jamming. Harold Cottam, wireless operator on the Carpathia, finally answered questions around 9 a.m. on April 15.
“I can’t do everything at once. Patience please. . . .On arrival at daybreak, we saw field ice 25 miles, apparently solid, and a quantity of wreckage and a number of boats full of people. We raised about 670 souls. The Titanic has sunk. . . .”
The Californian steamed around looking for debris and bodies after Carpathia headed for New York. After finding nothing, they continued to Boston.
On arrival, Captain Lord, Evans, and several crew members were served subpoenas to testify at the Inquiry being held in Washington DC. Several newspapers offered to pay Evans hundreds of dollars for his story, but he refused. After testifying, the Californian returned to Liverpool, where the same batch of crew testified all over again at the British Inquiry.
Evans gave up the sea for a time after the disaster and worked at the London office of the Marconi Company. He served in World War I, married, raised a family, and worked in the Marconi Company his entire life. Cyril Evans died of a heart attack in 1959.
Famous in the 20s by Amanda Meek
Ever want to be famous? Amanda Christine Young did. In 1929 she was 17 years old and had been performing for 5 years. Her mother, being poor, decided that Amanda could use her talents to make money for the family. Mrs. Young enrolled her daughter in dance school and voice lessons and they paid off. The poor girl from Chicago went on to become a famous actress, singer, and performer.
Amanda started out in small clubs across the city, gaining popularity for her blond hair, wonderful looks, and talent. It wasn't until 1929, though, that she really hit it big. While performing at a club where she was friends with the manager, Amanda met a man backstage. Thomas DiGanno. This beganh er long line of different men every night. But one of them made her a star.
He brought her to Hollywood with the promise of putting her in pictures. The "talkies" were just getting off the ground, so Amanda started in silent films and worked her way up. They were small films, but she made good money for her roles. She mainly stayed to the melodrama that was common around the 20s. She had the voice and the acting Hollywood was looking for. She was an instant hit and a household name, but that all ended soon.
Mrs. Young died in 1932 and Amanda got arrested for a bar fight and her misdemeanors of drinking during prohibition were brought against her. She was released from her movie contract and had no where to go.
During WWII, Amanda went to Paris to sing for the
soldiers stationed there. It worked
for awhile, but she gave up. She moved back to
the United States and bought a small house in New England around 1946. Amanda
lived the rest of her life writing
music and living alone. She never found
anyone, but was fine on her own. She was a famous gal who disappeared but
still lives as a classic of the 20s and 30s.
For more information on Amanda Christine Young, go to:
The What If? by Nicole Obaid
What if Titanic didn't sink? Have you ever stopped to think about that? Or ever thought of what would have become of the people and the Titanic itself? Maybe someone who died would have discovered a cure for cancer…prevented WWI, or caused a revolution? What would those people have done with their lives? Maybe they would have done these things…
Jack Phillips Jack went on to serve on boats in WWI and came out a decorated hero. Afterwards he stayed with the Marconi Marine, rising in the ranks until he took over the company after Mr. Marconi retired in the 1930s. On the homefront Jack married longtime love Beatrice Fallon, ditching his fiancée, Kathleen Green. Jack and Beatrice shared a life of happiness, eventually moving to a cozy home just south of London. They had fifteen children: Harry, Jack Jr., Catherine, Elizabeth, Lucy, Thomas, Elsie, Anne, Molly, Amanda, Julia, Victoria, Robert, and twins: Jeremy and Jason. After the twins were born Jack decided enough children were enough and created a wonder drug for the prevention of children. It was very popular and the Phillips became rich overnight. In the end, Jack died in 1978 of a dead liver from too many days of drinking brandy. His wife, Bea, died shortly after of a broken heart.
Thomas Andrews Thomas built bigger and better ships until he became the head of Harland and Wolff in 1920. He renovated the way ships were built and became famous worldwide. Nellie and he had three more children and lived happily in Belfast. When Thomas grew older he moved to the country where he had a sprawling house where he could watch his grandchildren play in the front lawn. He died in 1965 from a stroke.
Annie Meek Annie made it to America with John Davies. She ended up broke in NYC…a very unfriendly city for poor people. Without any money she took a job as a seamstress and her and John lived in the less grand parts of the city…which wasn't much of a change from Ireland. She married John and after five years got enough money to move out west. But they didn't have much luck in Colorado-their farm went bust and the small gold they found dried up. Annie had sixteen children but one day John left her for a rancher named Betsy Blockhardt. So Annie took the kids and went out to California where she worked outside of Sacramento on a ranch owned by a Ted W. Splockett. Eventually she fell in love with Ted and married him…to the scandal of his family. She had three more kids and then died when a truck of migrant workers coming from the orange farm ran her over in California in 1955.
Harold Bride After the successful sailing of Titanic Harold went on to become Marconi's second in command after Jack Phillips, who he remained good friends with. He married Mabel Ludlow but from the day they were married he stayed in different quarters. Ten years later he decided he'd had enough-Mabel was driving him crazy. So he left her and got a divorce which was pretty scandalous. Mabel got everything and left poor Harold penniless. He moved to Edinburgh, where he bumped into a married woman named Lucy Evans. Harold didn't know her well but she was the wife of a colleague he hated. It was love at first site and Lucy left her husband, Cyril for Harold. They were married but broke. Their friend Jack let them stay at his place until they got back on their feet and Harold became Jack's vice president of his pill company. Harold died in a freak fishing accident in 1980. His wife lived until 1999 when she choked on apple pie after seeing the movie "American Pie."
J. Bruce Ismay Titanic made Ismay a success and made the White Star Line very rich. But the sinking of the Brittanic in WWI was a blow to the line and sales dropped, allowing the Cunard Line to buy them out. They promptly fired Ismay who was discovered to be taking money from the company anyway. He was sued and lost and was broke…wandering the streets of Liverpool begging for spare change. Ismay's wife left him and married the head of the Cunard Line to spite him. He died a broken man in 1934, due to his misery.
Jack Thayer jr., Jack took over the Philadelphia railroad after he graduated from college. He married Lois Cassatt and they had many kids. After one of his sons was killed in WWII Jack was inspired by his father to form a support group for the families of men who died in the war. It became very popular and Jack was the president of it. The Thayer foundation lasted, becoming one of the most important foundations in America. Jack died in 1991 of complications surrounding old age.
Daniel and Mary Marvin When they got back from their honeymoon Daniel discovered that he had inherited a large amount of money from an old relative that had passed away. He put the money into the arts, upon the insistence of his wife who really wanted to be an actress. She became the star of a play that Daniel backed up financially and it became a Broadway hit. Mary Marvin became famous as a stage actress, the pre-Audrey Hepburn. She and Daniel had a happy but childless life, until Daniel's death in a car accident in 1976. Mary lived until 1997 and while she was alive she won 4 Tony's, 5 Oscars, 2 Golden Globe Awards and had her feet and handprints in the Hollywood walk of Fame.
John Jacob Astor NYC society was not nice to JJ Astor when he returned. The press hounded him constantly until his son was born. Madeleine and JJ divorced less than three years after their marriage because she was unfaithful to him and it was discovered that it wasn't really his child. Shamefully JJ went back to his first wife who accepted him with open arms. It was then and only then did NY society take JJ back and he was able to gain his rightful place in society until he drowned in Lake Michigan on a boating trip in 1967.
Maggie Brown When she returned to Denver she discovered that society there still didn't welcome her. She didn't really care…NY the place she wanted to be. Maggie moved to NY permanently, leaving her husband behind. She became very popular there and made a large sum of money in the stock market. Maggie had a keen eye for business and she sensed the fall of the stock market and had the sense to take all of her money out of the bank and cash in all her stock. During the Depression she still managed to live well and also helped out the poor, donating thousands of dollars to starving citizens of NY.
Charles Lightoller With his outstanding service record to the White Star Line Lightoller's next post after Titanic was serving as Captain of the Oceanic, which was his favorite ship. During WWI he was put as Captain of the Lusitania and successfully saved everyone aboard the ship due to his experience with shipwrecks. That made him a national hero. He was Captain of the Titanic, Olympic, and Mauretania before his retirement. After that he was appointed to work as the head of the White Star Line, making it more prosperous than ever and eventually buying out its rival, Cunard. Lightoller died in 1978 of old age.
Harry Widener Shortly after his arrival back in the states Harry founded the Harry Widener Library Association of Philadelphia. He married but had no children. In 1940 he divorced his estranged wife for undisclosed reasons. Harry continued to do good works for Philadelphia and his association raised the literacy rate and made it the highest in the US. He died in 1980 when a pile of books in his library crashed on top of him…and a copy of Bacon's Essays hit him in the head, causing him to slip into a coma. Harry passed away a day later.
The Titanic After many long years of reliable service to the White Star Line the Titanic was taken to be torn into scrap metal during WWII. The furnishings in her were strewn all over the world-to museums and private collections. She held the title of the most grand ship ever to have sailed the seas in history.
Life of Lincoln by Joelle Doye
“Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
Many of you probably recognize immediately the speaker of these words and realize they were spoken by our nation’s sixteenth President, Abraham Lincoln. Most people have heroes or someone they admire. Abraham Lincoln has interested me since I was very young. As I have learned, many people respect him and are greatful for all that he did. Travel with me now as we journey through Lincoln’s life. Lets begin with the early years.
Lincoln once stated, “I am not ashamed to confess that 25 years ago I was a hired laborer, mauling rails, at work on a flatboat, just what might happen to any poor man’s son. I want every man to have a chance.” Abraham himself proved the fact that one can rise from poverty to become great. Born in a log cabin near Hodgenville, Kentucky in 1809, Lincoln rose from a life of hardships to become one of our nation’s greatest leaders. His desire for learning powered him to educate himself and eventually become President of the United States. In the 1830’s, he moved to Springfield, Illinois to practice law where he became one of the most prestigious lawyers in town. Everyone knew Abraham Lincoln.
Abraham seemed happy on the exterior and no one would have ever guessed that he was suffering internally. Love was the one thing he was missing in his life. Death had claimed his first sweetheart and ever since this, marriage had seemed to be out of the question. These romantic shortcomings led him to state, “I have now come to the conclusion never again to think of marrying, and for this reason, I could never be satisfied with anyone who would be blockhead enough to have me.” But soon he was to meet the young and ambitious Mary Ann Todd of Lexington, Kentucky. She came from a well-to-do family which helped him on his way to the presidency. Their love led to their marriage and four children, tragically only one of which would live into adulthood.
Then Lincoln’s life dramatically changed in 1860 when he was elected President. Abraham once declared, “I will have to leave, not knowing when or ever I may return.” He would need to go to Washington to take command of a deeply troubled nation. Soon after his arrival in Washington, the Civil War broke out on April 12, 1861 when Confederate troops fired upon Fort Sumter. This was the start perhaps not only of the greatest war in American history, but maybe also of the greatest task ever set before a President.
During Lincoln’s next four years as President, he would need to overcome many adversities, not only in the war but also in his personal life. In 1862, his sons Willie and Tad both became ill with Typhoid Fever. Tad was strong enough to fight the disease, but Willie was not. He died in February 1862 at the age of 11. Earlier in 1846, the Lincoln’s had lost another son Eddie at the age of three. Death was something the Lincoln’s were becoming all too familiar with.
In November of 1863, Lincoln visited Gettysburg Pennsylvania to give a few appropriate remarks. He was mistaken when he said, “The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here.” The Gettysburg Address has become one of the most famous historical speeches and the one we most commonly associate with Abraham Lincoln.
After four grueling years, the Civil War finally came to an end on April 9, 1865. However, the joy ended five days later when President Lincoln was assassinated while attending a play at Ford’s Theater. Lincoln’s body was put on a train and sent back to Springfield, Illinois. If you visit Springfield today, you can view the final resting place to perhaps our nation’s greatest leader. It is an everlasting tribute to the memory of an everlasting man.
~*~
My Lady Fair by Robin Bender
'Twas thou not, my lady fair?
For whom gentile hearts dance on air,
'twas only a dream,
my mind's unawaken eye, a gleam.
Torn asunder upon awaking,
my heart in hand, surely shaking.
'Twas thou not my lady fair?
I thought I saw you standing there.
~*~
To Me by Robin Bender
To me, life shines from your eyes.
To me, your soul is where love lies.
To me, the innocence of your heart is gold.
To me, your care leads to stories always told.
To me, shivers run through me with just one touch.
To me, I love you very much.
~*~
Angel Beside Me by Molly Lemmer
Sleep slips away, leaving an angel beside me.
I long to smooth back the tousled hair shadowing
your seraphim features. Waiting with blooming
blush and smile for you to awaken and see me
as an angel beside you.
~*~
Awake by Molly Lemmer
I open my eyes to awake from this dream,
yet you're still before me.
Eyes dancing,
smile brilliant,
hand waiting patiently for mine.
~*~
Clinched Heart by Molly Lemmer
Awash in a sea of love,
cliched--I know--but true.
drowning in your eyes,
rescued by your smile,
pulled to safety by a
crook of your finger.
~*~
Untitled by Amanda Meek
With my heart in my hands
and my hands drying tears
I walked among the crumbling halls
all the same
Grey
And my hair flowing back
In the cold autumn wind
And leaves flew around me
Laughing
And then the moist fog
Cleared away
The wind fell silent
And the leaves stopped laughing
And the sun rose bright
Over the bright autumn trees
The pillars around
Grew brighter with each second
As the clouds
Moved away
And the sun grew brighter
And brighter
And brighter
And the world grew white
Then fell silent.
~*~
One moment without you by Amanda Meek
One moment without you
is like a thousand years
we're so far apart
I can no longer count the tears
And even thought I love you
it hurts to think of you
although it is worth it
for pain to pierce me through
as long as you are there
to sing me to sleep at night
and your image stays in my mind
and the stars like you shine bright
then let me think of you
always and forever
and when I ask if you'll leave
please say 'never'
~*~
(Classifieds are actually free advertisements for people's pages)
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This is Amanda Meek's Graphics' company. She did all of the graphics for this page. If you would like free graphics and more, go to Amanda Graphics!
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This is Amanda Meek's Titanic Graphics devision. For free Titanic graphics, visit this page
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Memories of Titanic...some of us have them. Some of us were there. Meet Thomas Andrews, Lucy Bride, and others. Meet the passengers.
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Visit the Titanic again. Dedications, information, and more. Visit Nicole's Titanica
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Althought Thomas Andrews died on the Titanic more than 87 years ago, he still lives on...as William Barnes. Learn more about Bill's new book- "I Built the Titanic" - here-
http://www.zenation.com/tomandrews/barnes.html
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And learn about other GREAT Titanic authors at Paulette's site-
http://www.zenation.com/paulette/books2.html
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Thanks to Xung Phung for the rose dividers.
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