Whittington families » Edward John (Captain Of Titanic) SMITH (1850-1912)

Personal data Edward John (Captain Of Titanic) SMITH 

• He was born on January 27, 1850 in 51 Well Street, Hanley, Stoke On Trent, Han/011/060.
• He died on April 15, 1912 in Western Atlantic, 41.731944 N. 49.945833 W, he was 62 years old.

  Age:62

• A child of Edward SMITH and Catherine MARSH (HANCOCK) (SMITH)
• This information was last updated on July 30, 2015.

Household of Edward John (Captain Of Titanic) SMITH

He is married to Sarah Eleanor PENNINGTON, (SMITH).

They got married on January 13, 1887 at St Oswald, Winwick, Warrington, Lancs, Vol 8C, P 231, he was 36 years old.

Child(ren):

1. Helen Melville (Mel) SMITH (GILBERTSON) RUSSELL_(COOKE)  1898-1973 

Notes about Edward John (Captain Of Titanic) SMITH

I include him in my tree as he is commemorated by a large bronze statue in Beacon Park, Lichfield.

He left School; at 12 and worked at Etruria Forge, a metal works. he worked a Naysmith Steam Forging hammer,

Later he went to Liverpool and signed on as a Boy with his half brother Joseph Hancock, Captain of an American sailing ship, «b»"Senator Weber".«/b»

In 1875 he had progressed through the ranks and became a Master Mariner, he took command of the«b» "Lizzie Fennell"«/b»

He once commented upon seeing The«b»" Brittanic"«/b» thathe wouldnt mind dropping rank in order to sign on aboard her.

Shortly afterwards, he resigned his Captaincy of the«b» "Lizzie Fennel"«/b»,and joined the "White Star" Line as a fourth officer on the«b» "Celtic"«/b», In 1887 he commanded the «b»"Republic"«/b», and spent the rest of his career on the North Atlantic.

From 1895 he was Captain of the «b»"Majestic"«/b», and when the Boer War started in 1899 he and his ship were used to transport Troops to Cape Colony.

Seaman G.A. Hogg said, "I saw Captain Smith in the water alongside a raft. 'There's the skipper,' I yelled. 'Give him a hand'. They did, but he shook himself free and shouted to us, 'Goodbye boys, I'm going to follow the ship.' That was the last we saw of our skipper".

Another claimed that Smith had shouted, "Be British, boys, be British!" before going under with the ship.

This phrase is inscribed on the memorial.

The statue was sculpted by Lady Kathleen Scott the widow of Captain Robert Falcon Scott (CVO. RN. (Scott of the Antarctic).

The statue was unveiled by their daughter, Helen Melville Smith.

he lived in their family home " Woodhead" Winn Road, Portswood, Southampton.

His memorial which is still in Beacon Park Lichfield as of 2010, but in 1985, Stoke city Council requested Lichfield to give back his statue, Councillor Bob Blewitt of Whittington, said that Stoke should be given a flat refusal as Lichfield had cleaned the pidgeon droppings from it for over70 years.

Another Councillor, Doug Constable said they should be told to "Go to Hell".

In 1997, the year that the film of the Titanic was released, Stoke Council had another try to get the statue given to them. Councillors John Thompson and Peter Van Hagen commented that before the film, no-one wanted to know him.

February 5th 1867, aged just 16 years, Edward J. Smith left his home town in Stoke-on-Trent «u»(See Birth Place) «/u», and traveled to Liverpool to enlist in the Mercantile Marine. He was signed on as «b»" boy "«i» «/b»«/i»aboard the «b»«i»"Senator Weber"«/b»«/i», of which, his half brother, «i»Joseph Hancock«/i» was Captain. As an official apprentice of Messrs. Andrew Gibson & Co. of Liverpool, theyoung and ambitious Smith began, what was to be, an impeccable career at sea.

Smith took several exams to aid his chances of promotion during his early career, and received his Master's Certificate on 26th May 1875, he was now 25 years of age. By 1880 he had joined the White Star Line as Junior Officer, and in 1887 he took command of his first ship, «u»«b»«i»"The Celtic" «/u»«/b»«/i». The following year he joined the Royal Naval Reserve, and, due to him obtaining a Master's Certificate, Smith was qualified as a full Lieutenant, and received the right to have the letters «b»"R.N.R."«/b» after his name. It also meant that any Ship under his command could fly the «b»"Blue Ensign"«/b» , and in a time of War, Smith, his Ship and the Ship's Company could be enlistedto serve in the Royal Navy.

In 1899 the Boer war started in the British-held Cape Colony, and sure enough, Smith was called for duty. At the time, he was in command of the «u»«b»«i»"Majestic" «/u»«/b»«/i», and it was on this ship, with his own crew, that he helped transport troops into the War Zone. The «b»Majestic«/b» made two trips to South Africa, both without incident, and for Smith and his crew, it was merely a variation on the transporting of his "usual passengers". In 1903, for his efforts during service, «i»King Edward V11«/i» presented Smith with the Transport Medal showing the "Africa Clasp", of which he wore with pride from that day on.

The end of Smith's 9 yr command of the Majestic came in June 1904, when he took control of the Largest Ship in the World, the White Star Line's newest vessel, «u»«b»«i»"S.S. Baltic" «/u»«/b»«/i». Her maiden Voyage, from Liverpool to New York, went without incident, and Smith was to remain with this ship until 1907 when he received command of his second "Big Ship", the «u»«b»«i»"S.S. Adriatic" «/u»«/b»«/i». Once again the Maiden Voyage was safely made, and the Ship returned to Liverpool several days later. But whilst they were docked in New York, Smith gave an interview to the "New York Times", and, commenting on his Career at Sea, the Captain made the following statement :

«b»«i»"When anyone asks me how I can best describe my experience in nearly forty years at sea, I merely say, uneventful. Of course there have been winter gales, and storms and fog and the like. But in all my experience, I have never been in any accident ... or any sort worth speaking about. I have seen but one vessel in distress in all my years at sea. I never saw a wreck and never have been wrecked nor was I ever in any predicament that threatened to end in disaster of any sort."«/b»«/i» his command of the Adriatic, Captain Smith had received the R.N.R Long Service Medal, which he once again proudly wore next to his Boer Service Decoration, and it was shortly after this he gained a promotion from the White Star Line. Captain E.J. Smith had now become «b»«i»CommanderEdward John Smith R.D., R.N.R.«/b»«/i» (R.D. being Royal Distinction). With his impeccable reputation as one of the World's most experienced Sea Captains, Smith was entrusted with the command of yet another "Big Ship", this time, he was to take the helm of the «u»«b»«i»"Olympic" «/u»«/b»«/i»

The«b» Olympic's«/b» maiden Voyage ended on June 21st 1911, with Smith, yet again, making a successful crossing. But when the Ship slowly came to dock at Pier 59 in New York, under the command of the harbour pilot, an incident occurred that, to some, gave a warning of what wasto come from these "Giant Ships". As 12 tugs gently eased the «b»Olympic«/b» into position, one of them suddenly got caught in the backwash from the Ship's Starboard propeller. The 198 ton tug was spun around and trapped under the Stern of the liner, it's ensign mast shattering against the «b»Olympic's«/b» hull. The smaller vessel, after finally managing to free itself from the backwash, was seen by an anxious crowd to "limp" over to a nearby Pier and out of danger. This was just one of several incidents to involve the«b» Olympic«/b» in the shallow waters of harbours and estuaries. Granted, Smith was in overall command of the Ship, but, at the time of the incidents they were under the control of a Harbour Pilot.

Not willing to have the limelight taken away from them, The White Star Line announced the Maiden Voyage of yet another of their «b»"Great Ships"«/b». Sailing from Southampton at Noon April 10th 1912, was the Largest most Luxurious Liner ever to be known. Her name.....«b»«i»"Titanic"«/b»«/i», and she was to be under the command of their most prized Captain....«b»«i»Edward John Smith. «/b»«/i»

The family lived in an imposingred brick, twin-gabled house "Woodhead" on Winn Road, Portswood, Southampton.

TITANIC STORIES

TITANIC MUMMY

TITANIC CURSE

The Titanic and the curse of Pharaoh Amen-Ra

The true story of the Titanic's paranormal legacy. Was the disaster predicted? Did she sink because of paranormal events?

This next section was sent to me by Noreen Gamble a reader who helped me with my research.

The Princess of Amen-Ra:

Amen-RaOf all tales of the supernatural, this one is perhaps the best documented, the most disturbing and the most difficult to explain....

The Princess of Amen-Ra lived some 1,500 yrs before Christ. When she died, she was laid in an ornate wooden coffin and buried deep in a vault at Luxor, on the banks of the Nile. In the late 1890s, 4 rich young Englishmen visiting the excavations at Luxor were invited to buy an exquisitely fashioned mummy case containing the remains of Princess of Amen-Ra. They drew lots. The man who won paid several thousand pounds and had the coffin taken to his hotel. A few hours later, he was seen walking out towards the desert. He never returned.

The next day, one of the remaining 3 men was shot by an Egyptian servantaccidentally. His arm was so severely wounded it had to be amputated. The 3rd man in the foursome found on his return home that the bank holding his entire savings had failed. The 4th guy suffered a severe illness, lost his job and was reduced to selling matches in the street. Nevertheless, the coffin reached England (causing other misfortunes along the way), where it was bought by a London businessman.

After 3 of his family members had been injured in a road accident and his house damaged by fire, the businessman donated it to the British Museum.

As the coffin was being unloaded from a truck in the museum courtyard, the truck suddenly went into reverse and trapped a passer-by. Then as the casket was being lifted up the stairs by 2 workmen, 1 fell and broke his leg. The other, apparently in perfect health, died unaccountably two days later.

Once the Princess was installed in the Egyptian Room, trouble really started.Museum's night watchmen frequently heard frantic hammering and sobbing from the coffin. Other exhibits in the room were also often hurled about at night. One watchman died on duty; causing the other watchmen wanting to quit. Cleaners refused to go near the Princess too. When a visitor derisively flicked a dustcloth at the face painted on the coffin, his child died of measles soon afterwards.

Finally, the authorities had the mummy carried down to the basement. Figuring it could not do any harm down there. Within a week, one of the helpers was seriously ill, and the supervisor of the move was found dead on his desk.

By now, the papers had heard of it. A journalist photographer took a picture of the mummy case and when he developed it, the painting on the coffin was of a horrifying, human face. The photographer was said to have gone home then, locked his bedroom door and shot himself.

Soon afterwards, the museum sold the mummy to a private collector. After continual misfortune (and deaths), the owner banished it to the attic.

A well known authority on the occult, Madame Helena Blavatsky, visited the premises. Upon entry, she was sized with a shivering fit and searched the house for the source of "an evil influence of incredible intensity". She finally came to the attic and found the mummy case. "Can you exorcise this evil spirit ?" asked the owner.

"There is no such thing as exorcism. Evil remains evil forever. Nothing can be done about it. I implore you to get rid of this evil as soon as possible."

But no British museum would take the mummy; the fact that almost 20 people had met with misfortune, disaster or death from handling the casket, in barely 10 yrs, was now well known. Eventually, a hard-headed American archaeologist (who dismissed the happenings as quirks of circumstance), paid a handsome price for the mummy and arranged for its removal to New York .

In Apr 1912, the new owner escorted its treasure aboard a sparkling, new White Star liner about to make its maiden voyage to New York. On the night of Apr 14, amid scenes of unprecedented horror, the Princess of Amen-Ra accompanied 1,500 passengers to their deaths at the bottom of the Atlantic.

The name of the ship was «b»Titanic.

in May/June 2011, the statue of Captain Smith was restored and moved, as part of a lottery fund grant to Beacon Park«/b»

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Timeline Edward John (Captain Of Titanic) SMITH

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