13 Famous People Who Died On Titanic
The RMS Titanic, often remembered as the “unsinkable ship,” is known for one of the greatest catastrophic incidents in maritime history. The unsinkable ship met a tragic fate when it collided with an iceberg and sank. This famous tragedy has been the inspiration for several books and movies. Among the passengers, who sadly passed away, were some of the wealthiest and most prominent figures of their time. These famous people who died on Titanic represented the economic, political, and social elite.
When Did The Titanic Sink?
The luxury travel ocean liner was on its maiden voyage to New York City when it hit the iceberg on 14th April, 1912 at 23:40 (ship’s time). The 882.5-foot-long ship sank on 15th April, 1912, 2 hours 40 minutes after its crash, at 02:20 (ship’s time).
It was said that the ship could have borne the breach of 4 out of its 16 compartments.. However, during this collision, 5 of the ship’s watertight compartments were compromised and the ship eventually drowned.
How Many People Died On The Titanic?
There were a total of 2,228 passengers on the unsinkable ship on the day of the collision. The ship sank, claiming the lives of reportedly 1,517 people onboard. Only 705 people survived. It is said that due to insufficient number of lifeboats, the casualties were much more than they should have been.
According to a report, 97.22% of the 144 female first-class passengers were rescued, while only 32.57% of their 175 male counterparts were saved. Male second-class passengers came after with only 14 out of 168 passengers surviving. The majority of the deaths were faced by the crew members (~700 fatalities) and third-class passengers (~500 fatalities).
Among the Titanic passengers who died, there were some famous figures and celebrities. These famous figures are a prominent reminder of how the destiny of all humans, regardless of their status, is the same.
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13 Famous People Who Died On Titanic
Titanic was on its maiden voyage and was known to be the epitome of luxury travel. Due to this, naturally, there were a lot of prominent and famous people on the Titanic.
Here’s a look at 13 famous people who died on Titanic.
1. Captain Edward Smith
Edward Smith was a naval officer who served as captain of the RMS Titanic. He was associated with the White Star Line, the parent company of the ship, for many years and was highly respected.
He was famously known as the millionaires captain, and was often responsible for leading the finest ships for the company. It is said that he had planned to retire after the ship’s maiden voyage.
Survivors say that he made a lot of efforts to save as many lives as possible, but ultimately went down with the ship. However, other sources say that he was very ineffective and inactive in preventing loss of life. His actions are often heavily criticized.
Nonetheless, his death is often seen as a tragic end to a distinguished maritime career.
2. Isidor Straus
Isidor Straus, the co-owner of Macy’s department store, was another prominent figure aboard the Titanic. He was one of the most famous titanic passengers who died.
He was traveling with his wife, Ida.
The couple first met after the Civil War when Straus had no money. He moved to New York City and with his brother acquired Macy’s. He was not only a prominent figure in the business world, but also in the political world; he was elected to be a member of the US House of Representatives.
It is said that Straus was offered a seat on the lifeboat but declined as he didn’t want to board the raft until every woman and child were off the unsinkable ship. Ida also then refused to leave his side when offered a spot on a lifeboat. She graciously offered her spot to her maid along with her fur coat.
Ida is quoted saying: “I will not be separated from my husband. As we have lived, so will we die together.”
Survivors reported that the couple was seen sitting on deck chairs, awaiting their fate together. In the 1997 movie Titanic, they are shown lying together in bed as the water flooded their room.
Straus’s body was recovered from the ocean, but Ida’s body was never found. His body now lies in the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx. Their love story is one of the more poignant memories of the tragedy.
3. John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor IV was probably one of the most rich people who died on the Titanic. He was a German-American millionaire and member of the Astor family, one of the most prominent real estate groups of that time.
He was more than just a businessman. He was also an inventor, a real estate developer, a novelist, and served in the Spanish-American War.
He was traveling with his pregnant wife, Madeleine, who was one of the lucky people who survived. But Astor wasn’t that lucky; he died at the age of 47. They were on their way to New York so that his wife could give birth in the United States.
Since women and children were prioritized for lifeboats, many men died. Astor also tried to survive but was last seen clinging on the side of a raft.
It is still considered that he was the wealthiest person on board that day with a net worth of $87 million — which is more than $2 billion in today’s money.
4. Thomas Andrews
Thomas Andrews was the chief architect who was responsible for designing the Titanic. He was reportedly making notes on changes he wanted to make in the ship’s facilities. This was a common practice for engineers during a ship’s maiden voyage to assess the ship’s functioning and note problems, if any.
He was one of the most famous people who died on Titanic who considered the ship to be one of his finest works. He knew the fate of the ship almost immediately after the iceberg collided.
It is said that his actions were heroic until the end, as he stayed on board helping passengers tirelessly to make sure they survived. He also searched various parts of the ship to help anyone evacuate. People also claim that he was throwing chairs in the ocean for people to float on them.
Contrary to this, some sources say that he was actually in the smoking room in the final moments. Though the majority say that he was helping till the last moment. He is regardless memorialized as a hero.
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5. Benjamin Guggenheim
Benjamin Guggenheim was a member of the wealthy Guggenheim family and a prominent businessman known for his lavish lifestyle. He was the fifth son of mining entrepreneur Meyer Guggenheim.
He was traveling on the Titanic with his mistress Léontine Aubart, his valet Victor Giglio, his chauffeur René Pernot and Aubart’s maid Emma Sägesser.
At first, when the ship collided, Guggenheim took it for a minor accident. But he soon realized that the ship was indeed going to sink. As the Titanic was sinking, Guggenheim reportedly dressed in his finest evening wear and told others, “We’ve dressed up in our best and are prepared to go down like gentlemen.”
Guggenheim spent every last second going from lifeboat to lifeboat to ensure all women and children deboarded the ship safely, according to a steward.
He reportedly passed on a message to one of the survivors for his estranged wife– “Tell her I played the game out straight to the end. No woman shall be left aboard this ship because Ben Guggenheim is a coward.”
Ironically, Guggenheim was not meant to be on the ship. He was going on a sail to Lusitania but his journey was canceled due to some repairs. Unfortunately, his body was never recovered.
6. Archibald Butt
Major Archibald Butt was a U.S Army Officer and a military aide to the U.S Presidents William Howard Taft and Theodore Roosevelt in 1908.
Butt was on his way back to the U.S after his six-week vacation. When the Titanic was sinking, Butt reportedly helped women and children into lifeboats, maintaining order despite the chaos. Many said that he was even seen threatening male passengers who tried to ignore the ship’s “women and children first” protocol.
During his memorial service, President Taft broke down into tears while delivering the eulogy. He said, “If Archie could have selected a time to die he would have chosen the one God gave him. His life was spent in self-sacrifice, serving others… Everybody who knew him called him Archie. I couldn’t prepare anything in advance to say here. I tried, but couldn’t. He was too near me… he had become as a son or a brother.”
Unfortunately, his body was never found.
7. Jacques Futrelle
Jacques Futrelle was a very successful mystery author and one of the well-known people among the casualties on Titanic. He started his career as a journalist working for prominent publications like the now defunct New York Herald and the Boston Post.
He was best known for his fictional stories about Professor Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, also known as ‘The Thinking Machine’.
Futrelle was traveling with his wife, Lily May Futrelle, who were dining with Henry and Renee Harris when the ship collided with the iceberg. Futrelle ensured that his wife got on a lifeboat. His wife, who survived, remembers that the last she saw him was smoking a cigarette on the deck with John Jacob Astor IV.
His book, My Lady’s Garter was published the same year after he passed away. His wife added a line under a picture of him in the book. It said– ‘To the heroes of the Titanic, I dedicate this my husband’s book’ written.
Unfortunately, his body was never discovered.
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8. Henry B. Harris
Henry B. Harris was a successful American Broadway producer, theater owner and one of the famous people who died on Titanic. Some of his well-known works include ‘Soldiers of Fortune’, ‘Strongheart’, and ‘The Third Degree and Strongheart’.
He was traveling with his wife, Renée, after a European tour and was on his way back to the U.S. Renée had broken her arm earlier that day at the grand staircase of the Titanic. She didn’t want to leave her husband behind but she claims “Harry lifted me in his arms and threw me into the arms of a sailor and then threw a blanket that he had been carrying for me through the hours,”
Renée survived, but Henry unfortunately didn’t. She went on to take over her husband’s work and even became one of the first female theatrical producers in the U.S.
Sadly, Harris’s body was never found.
9. William Thomas Stead
William Thomas Stead was a famous investigative journalist and newspaper editor at the time. He was often described as “the most famous journalist in the British Empire.”
He was on the Titanic as he was traveling to a peace conference in the U.S.
He had long been an advocate for peace, social reform, and was very vocal about his controversial investigative series on child prostitution.
He also published a magazine dedicated to supernatural and psychic editorials known as Julia’s Bureau. He was a devoted spiritualist and it is said that he even predicted the sinking of the Titanic in his fictional stories.
In 1886, he wrote a story that resembled the happenings of the Titanic tragedy. He predicted that one of the most tragic maritime disasters in history will occur due to inadequate lifeboats. The story was called ‘How the Mail Steamer Went Down in Mid Atlantic by a Survivor.’ In this, only 200 passengers and crew members of the original 700 people on board survived the sinking of the ship, due to a lifeboat shortage.
It is said that he spent his final hours reading in his cabin.
10. John Thayer
John Thayer was the Vice President of the Pennsylvania Railroad, one of the most powerful companies in the United States at the time.
Thayer was traveling with his family; his wife and son survived, but he did not. They were on their way back from a trip to Berlin. He made sure his wife and son got on a lifeboat. It is reported that Thayer was looking “pale and determined” after all the lifeboats sailed away.
His son, John Thayer Jr., later wrote a memoir about the sinking and his experience of survival.
John Thayer was one of the famous people on the Titanic whose body was never found.
11. George Dennick Wick
George Dennick Wick was an American industrialist and the founder of the nation’s largest regional steel-manufacturing firms– Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company.
He was onboard the Titanic with his wife, daughter, a cousin and an aunt. He was reportedly traveling to Europe to improve and restore his health. He unfortunately booked the luxury ship to return to the U.S.
On knowing about the collision he made sure all of his family members got on a lifeboat and was last seen on the deck, waving to his family as they escaped on a lifeboat.
His cousin told reporters what happened later: “There was a big wave. The sea was calm, otherwise, and I asked a sailor what it was. He said, ‘the Titanic has sunk!'”
His body was never found.
12. Charles Melville Hays
Charles Melville Hays was a prominent Canadian railroad executive who was the president of the Grand Trunk Railway. He was traveling with his family on the ship from London. Hays had a significant role in expanding the railway network in Canada and was returning home to continue his work.
Apparently, he was skeptical about going on the Titanic’s maiden voyage. According to reports, he told his colleagues that “the trend toward large boats might end in tragedy.” He thought that the shipping lines made ships that were too big for safety.
When the boat was sinking, he helped his wife, daughter and maid to get on lifeboats. He was accompanied by his son-in-law and secretary, none of whom survived.
His body was recovered.
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13. Manuel Uruchurtu Ramírez
Manuel Uruchurtu Ramírez was a lawyer and Mexican politician. He was known to be the only Mexican passenger to die on the Titanic.
He is also famously known as ‘The Mexican Hero of the Titanic’.
The story is that Uruchurtu was offered a seat on the lifeboat due to his role as a diplomat. However, he gave that up for a second-class woman passenger who pleaded with him to give her his spot. The passenger, Elizabeth Nye, told him that her husband and child were waiting for her in New York. Uruchurtu gave up his spot and asked the woman to tell his family how he died. However, this story was never confirmed.
Ironically, Uruchurtu wasn’t even supposed to be on the Titanic that day. He had originally purchased tickets on the SS France, but his nephew convinced him to go on the maiden voyage of the luxury liner.
Uruchurtu’s body was never found.
What Happened To Those Who Died On The Titanic
The SS Bremen, a German-built ocean liner heading to America from Germany, had sailed into the whereabouts of the sunken Titanic on April 20, 5 days after the tragedy. They helped in the recovery mission and described what they saw as frozen bodies floating along with doors, pillows, chairs, tables and remains in the North Atlantic. This was similar to the frozen bodies scene from the movie Titanic, where Rose is hanging on to the door.
Within two weeks of the sinking, only 300 bodies were recovered. All the first class bodies were brought back to the shore. The corpses of other class passengers were brought back only if they were identified or were in satisfactory condition.
Over the next few weeks, some titanic bodies washed ashore and others were buried at sea. Some passengers on other ships reportedly also fainted after seeing bodies in the water.
The exact number of how many bodies were floating on the surface, and how many drowned below the deck is unknown. However, only 300 bodies were initially recovered and another 100 or so found by passing ships, out of 1,500 total.
That still leaves about 1,100 victims unaccounted for.
The Titanic Tragedy
The sinking of the Titanic was one of the biggest tragedies in maritime history. The loss of famous people who died on Titanic serves as a crucial reminder that nature does not discriminate, a reminder that wealth and status offers no protection from fate.
The Titanic’s sinking led to changes in maritime laws. These safety regulations ensured the minimum lifeboat capacity should be enough to support all passengers and crew onboard. Better safety protocols like wireless communication and ice patrol were also enforced as a result of the Titanic tragedy.
