Ship Of Dreams

It's April 14 1912, I never could have imagined that my life would change on this faithful day.

It was supposed to be a day of joy and excitement but instead it ended in tragedy and sadness. A day no one would ever forget.

The ship boarded on April 10 1912 in South Hampton England and set sail to Cherbourg France, Here more passengers would board. Next stop was Queenstown Ireland, on Thursday April 12 1912, final stop for boarding passengers.

This is where my sister Meana and I would board the Titanic, on our voyage to New York. We only planned to be in New York for a few days, then we were headed to Canada. We were told that Saskatoon in Saskatchewan has the best schools. Education was our main goal.

We were to board the Titanic from 11:30AM-1:30PM at Roaches point, also known as Cobh, the outer anchorage of Queenstown Harbor.

Meana and I were so excited that we had to be there early. We just had too. So mom and dad took us to the harbor to spend some time with us before we set sail on our new adventure.

As the boat pulled up to the harbor, Meana and I couldn't believe our eyes. The ship was bigger then we had ever seen. we couldn't wait to get on board and see what was inside.

Mom and dad wanted us to be safe and cautious, with me being the oldest, mom would always say "Now Lilly you mind your sister" I always did of course but this time would be different, we wouldn't be at home or close to our parents.

The goodbye was painful as we have never been away from our parents for any amount of time. we were always near. we had some ice cream and a few little tears. Mom and dad sent us on our way with smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes. Little did any of us know what this trip would bring.

Once we had boarded the ship we were sent to the second class area of the ship, these were the tickets mom and dad had paid for, they wanted to make sure we were treated well. Meana was so excited she couldn't stop pointing and gasping, "Oh Lilly, look at this ship, it really is the Ship Of Dreams. it's so beautiful, look at this stunning staircase, it's massive! And the Clock, oh my, mom would love that!" Up the stairs we go, down a long hallway to our room E103 right in the middle.

Our room had two bunk beds with a sink and mirror. The bathroom was between floors D and F decks. We didn't like that we had to use the bathroom somewhere else but we always made sure we went together.

Meana and I settled into our room and decided that it was time to explore the ship. We seen so many different things like a swimming pool, gym and a squash court. There were Turkish bathtubs and a smoke room, the barber shop was neat and the boat deck was the best place to be. it's so pretty out here on the open water with the hot sun and the wind in your face. Our first night away from home was exciting but scary.

We met so many wonderful people on board like Charles Melville Hays, Harry Molson, Ida and Isidore Straus, Molly Brown, and Major Arthur Godfrey Peuchen. All of these nice people had Meana and myself to dine with them while we were here. We ate things like Pate de foie gras (duck or goose), Peaches in Chartreuse jelly and Waldorf pudding. Sometimes our meals would last for hours, but it was fun and yummy.

We spent a lot of time will Molly. She was like the Mother of the ship, She made sure we were well taken care of, fed well and made sure we were safe in our rooms at night. Molly made sure that our trip was comfortable. She really made us feel safe. She was fun to be with.

At night we would sit out on the boat deck and look at the sky full of stars, it was so peaceful and beautiful, calming. I missed mom and dad but i knew this was for the best. Meana and I could help support mom and dad once they were old. Just hard to be away from them I suppose. Meana told me that she missed mom and dad also, and that she wished we could talk with them. I told her I felt the same way and soon enough we would get to see and talk with them. That night we cuddled up in the same bed as we were feeling pretty homesick.

The next day was amazing, so warm and sunny. The band was playing such beautiful music, tons of men and women were dressed in casual summer clothes with little sun umbrellas.

We got to watch and play some outdoor games like, shuffleboard, cricket, deck quoits, bull board and tennis. They also had fun games inside away from the heat. We saw people playing chess, and draughts, We also watched people play domino's and all kinds of card games.

Tonight after supper we got to be apart of story time, all the kids gathered in the reading and writing room. We had baked apples for dessert, they were yummy. Story time lasted an hour then we were all sent to our rooms for the night.

Meana and I woke up this morning to the band playing the most sweetest melody. The sound of the waves crashing against the ship. Everyday since we have been gone we have been writing to mom and dad so they know everything we have done on our trip. Today was no different we told mom and dad what we had for supper and that we got to be apart of story time and all the good snacks we had and about all the new friends we made.

Supper was quick tonight. I think everyone had, had enough of the heat and just wanted to relax in the cool night breeze.

Today was day 3 of our trip so far, and everything is better then imagined, the food is spectacular, the music is just as good, but the people and the experience is one that we will always remember.

Today was going to be a fun day for us as we had an event to attend. Today was the tennis game played by many people on board. They had drinks and there were prizes to be won. The cheering and excitement was captivating. Meana and I sat and watched the game with such joy.

After the game was over some of the first class passengers that we had met, such as Major Arthur Godfrey Peuchen, had invited us up for a few hours of swimming before we got ready for supper. The pool was the biggest either one of us had ever seen, It was marvelous to see and swimming in it was even better, the water was so warm and crystal clear.

Tonight's supper was wonderful we had Oysters mignonette, consommé Olga with sliced scallops, cream of barley soup, cold asparagus vinaigrette, filet mignons Lili seared filet, sliced truffles and a be do of crispy potatoes, cognac, madeira, red wine sauce with chicken Lyonnais, vegetable marrow, Roast duck with apple sauce, green pea timbale, creamed carrots, rice pilaf, (lamb with mint sauce) Punch romaine, lemon sorbet, champagne, whit wine simple syrup, Roasted squab with cress sauce, Poached salmon with mousseline sauce and cucumbers pate de foie gras mouse cylinder, celery garnish, Waldorf pudding with French ice cream and chocolate and vanilla éclairs.

After supper Meana and I were so tired that we washed up and got straight into our PJ's and headed to bed. we slept peacefully for a few hours and were woken up by a loud bang that shook the whole ship. We were scared, we didn't know what to do, it was so dark outside.

We stayed in our room for a little while longer and then we started to hear people screaming and yelling to put on your life jackets.

Meana looked at me so scared and said "Lilly what do we do?, I wish mom and dad were here." Me too I said. get dressed quickly I told Meana and here put on your life jacket.

Once dressed and ready to leave the room, We made our way to the top deck of the ship with people yelling, screaming and pushing others to get out of the way. Finally at the top, this is where we noticed the life boats were being filled with people and lowered into the ocean.

We heard a shipmate call out "All women and children over here, All women and children." So Meana and I ran as fast as we could to the boat, it was boat #6, I saw the number painted on the side.

Once everyone was loaded onto the boat they began to lower it into the ocean. I remember slowly being lowered to the sea when all of a sudden a man that we had met a few days earlier jumped on the boat right beside me (Lilly). I believe his name was Arthur Peuchen. He looked at me and said "We are all going to be fine, we are going to make it." We did make it into the water safely. As other boats were turned over and passengers fell out into the ice cold waters screaming, trying to swim or grab onto another life boat. Many did not make it into boats, they perished with the ship or succumbed to hypothermia, and drowned in the ice cold water.

Hours after the ship started to sink we could still hear the screams of the passengers, We never went back to look for any survivors, but other life boats did. Some life boats actually rescued some people from the icy cold water, lucky to be alive. Those of us who did survive will live with this tragedy forever.

We waited for what felt like forever, but was only an hour and 10 min for the Carpathia to arrive and rescue those of us that were in life boats. It took 4 hours to unload all the rescued passengers from the titanic onto the Carpathia, and we spent another 3 hours on the ship before we arrived in New York the actual destination of the Titanic, before the tragedy. Once we were settled in New York we called our parents to let them know we had made it. They made arrangements to join us in New York, After this they never wanted to be away from us again.

Fun Facts

~ A fire broke out in the coal room burning for 10 days before the ship set sail, and burned for several days into the voyage. it is believed that the fire was caused by spontaneous combustion of coal.

~ Titanic almost crashed into another ship when leaving the Queens harbor.

~ Lifeboat #4 this was the first life boat to turn around and they saved 7 people around 2:05AM. The second life boat to go back was #14 and they saved 5 people from the water. Life boats #2, #5 and #12 all went back but no survivors were left. In total 300 people were saved and 1,500 perished in the icy cold waters. A total of 13 passengers were rescued from the icy waters. Some of those that were rescued did not survive.

~ R.M.S Titanic was a Royal Mail ship for the British Postal Service, and had 5 mail clerks, (2 British, 3 American). They also carried 3,423 sacks of mail, seven million individual pieces. No mail was ever recovered.

~ It took 75 years to find the ship, Sept 1st 1985

~ The wreck of the Titanic lies at a depth of about 12,500 feet (3,800 meters; 2,100 fathoms), about 370 nautical miles (690 kilometers) south-southeast off the coast of Newfoundland. It lies in two main pieces about 2,000 feet (600 m) apart.

~ Margaret Brown: posthumously known as the "Unsinkable Molly Brown", was an American socialite and philanthropist. She was a survivor of the RMS Titanic, which sank in 1912, and she unsuccessfully urged the crew in Lifeboat No. 6 to return to the debris field to look for survivors.

~ Charles Melville Hays: a Canadian railway executive, helped in the formation of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (GTP). Hays wanted to return to Canada as he was worried about his daughter’s condition during her pregnancy and the opening of the Château Laurier. Mays helped the women of his party (his wife, daughter and maid) into the lifeboats. He perished along with his son-in-law and secretary. His body was found, and two memorials were held for him- one in Montreal and the other in London. He was buried in Mount Royal Cemetery but died before the GTP was completed.

~ Harry Molson: Harry Molson was not a prominent member of the influential branch of the Molson Family, he serendipitously inherited his fortune from his childless uncle, John Henry Robinson Molson (1826–1897), who was former owner of Molson Brewery and President of Molson Bank (1889–1897). Harry Molson went to England for business in February 1912, and had booked passage to return to Canada at the end of March on the Allan Line ocean liner, SS Tunisian. Molson was persuaded by fellow businessman, Major Arthur Peuchen, to extend his stay in England and sail home with him on Titanic's maiden voyage. He occupied First Class stateroom C-30.

~ Ida and Isidore Straus: Isidor Straus was the co-owner of the department store Macy’s and was an influential businessman. He was elected to serve in the US House of Representatives from January 30, 1894 to March 3, 1895. On the devastating night the Titanic sank, Isidor was with his wife, Ida Straus. He refused to get on a lifeboat as children and women were still onboard the unsinkable ship. So, his wife Ida refused. Ida is quoted saying, "I will not be separated from my husband. As we have lived, so will we die, together."

~ Major Arthur Godfrey Peuchen: The man labeled as a "Coward" for surviving the Titanic. The story not many know.... He offered his assistance in the aid of cutting lose the lifeboats and assisting the women and children on board the titanic to safety on the lifeboats, some of which were not at full capacity, he was then asked to assist in help with being a crewman on lifeboat #6. Arthur was one of the 30 Canadians on board the Titanic. Friend and business partner with Harry Molson, others friends included Mark Fortune, Charles Hays, Hugo Ross. Arthur Godfrey Peuchen was promoted to Colonel upon arrival back to Toronto after the sinking of the Titanic, from his courage and bravery that faithful night. He then lead a team in battle during WWI, where he was dubbed "A Brave Man" but still held the title of "Coward".

~ John Hugo Ross: Secretary-treasurer of the Winnipeg Real Estate Exchange. After two months in the Aegean and Egypt, John was feeling ill, and they decided to cut their vacation short. When John Ross, Thomas McCaffry, Mark Fortune and Thomson Beattie, boarded the Titanic on 10 April 1912, Ross was so ill with dysentery that he had to be carried to his cabin on a stretcher. It is possible that he spent the majority of the voyage confined to his cabin. Arthur Peuchen, made his way to Ross's room to tell him of the ice burg hit, only to find him still in his pajamas. When Ross was told the ship had struck an iceberg and that he should get dressed, Ross refused to believe the trouble was serious. "Is that all?" he told Peuchen. "It will take more than an iceberg to get me off this ship." John Hugo Ross died in the sinking of the Titanic and his body, was never recovered. A memorial plaque bearing his name can be found in Winnipeg City Hall. Hugo Street in Winnipeg is named after him in his honor.

~ Eliza Gladys Dean: Known as Millvina Dean, was a British civil servant, cartographer, and the last living survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912. At two months old, she was also the youngest passenger aboard. She passed away on May 31 2009.

~ Joseph Bell: Joseph Bell lead a team of engineers who stayed at their posts, feeding coal to the boilers to keep the lights on. Every one of them perished in the disaster, but their heroic actions saved many lives. They kept the lights and the power working to the end, to give the crew time to launch the lifeboats safely with some light instead of in absolute darkness. They held the chaos at bay as long as possible, they are true hero's at heart. To love so passionately that they would rather others survived.

~ Victim found - John "Jack" Victor Marsden: A coal trimmer, he was found near the bow of the ship and identified by his E-Ticket identification number on Oct 7, 2020.