A Forgotten Hero on the Titanic

Everyone knows the story of the Titanic sinking into the North Atlantic Ocean after hitting an iceberg on April 14, 1912 and the recounting of all the stories from that night are moving and speak of survival and tragic loss, but have you ever heard the long forgotten story of John Harper? Let me be the spokesperson for John Harper these many years later and hopefully, he won’t have died a death in vain in the frigid waters on that fateful night in the North Atlantic Ocean.

John Harper, as a young boy in Scotland, found God and by the age of 17, was preaching in the streets of the village where he lived.

He worked in the mills during the day and in September of 1896, as a young man, he started his own church, Paisley Road Baptist Church in Glasgow, Scotland. When Harper's church, Paisley Road West Church, Glasgow, moved into its brand new building in 1923, it was renamed Harper Memorial Church in his memory and honor.

John married and had one daughter, Annie, whose mother died from complications during childbirth. He was traveling that fateful night with his daughter and his niece, Jessie W. Leitch, who was his daughter’s caretaker.

It was the night of April 14, 1912 as the RMS Titanic headed unknowingly into the pages of history. At 11:40 p.m. on that night, as the ship was travelling faster than necessary in icy waters, an iceberg scraped along the ship's starboard side. The iceberg threw ice onto the decks and ripped open six watertight compartments below water. The sea rushed in. It was suspected later that if the Titanic had just hit the iceberg direct on, it would have been severely damaged, but would not have sunk.

During his life, John Harper almost drowned several times. At the age of two, he fell into a well but was rescued by his mother. At twenty-six, he got caught in a riptide and barely survived. At thirty-two he was on a ship in the Mediterranean that sprung a leak. Perhaps, God was testing him for something more important later? Would this be the night when John’s resolve was tested?

When it became clear to John Harper that the ship would founder, he immediately took his daughter to a lifeboat. He probably could have gotten on the lifeboat with his daughter and his niece, but he chose to stay behind.

Despite an order that only women and children were allowed in the lifeboats, of which there were only enough for about half the people on the ship, John noted that he saw J. Bruce Ismay climb aboard one of the collapsible lifeboats. Ismay claimed later that he saw no women and children in the area, but stories heard afterward challenged that. Ismay was the managing director and chairman of the White Star and was publicly branded a coward. He retired from the White Star Line in 1913.

Back to John Harper . . .

He felt he could be of more use on the ship trying to help people find their way to God in their last moments so he remained on the Titanic as he watched the lifeboat with Ismay lowered into the frigid water. He then went from person to person asking if they needed assistance and what could he do to help them?

As he headed to the rear of the ship which was now rising in the air, he passed the band which now was playing “Nearer my God to Thee.” He thought to himself, “how appropriate” and kept going.

It was reported that Harper was seen making his way up the deck yelling "Women, children and unsaved into the lifeboats!" It was only minutes later that the Titanic began to rumble deep within. Most people thought it was an explosion when actually, the giant ship was literally breaking in half. At this point, many people jumped off the decks and into the icy waters below, dark and unforgiving. John Harper was one of those people in the water at roughly 28 degrees Fahrenheit, -2 Celsius dying of shock and hypothermia along with hundreds of other people.

Survival time in water this cold was very limited, with unconsciousness typically occurring within 15 to 45 minutes and death in 30 to 50 minutes. Not much time to find God, but John was preaching to those that would listen.

Some of those who survived retold the story that John Harper preached the Gospel to the end (especially Acts 16:31 . . . "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.") He preached first aboard the sinking ship to those who wanted to listen and then afterward to those in the freezing water before dying in it himself.

That night 1528 people went into the frigid waters. John Harper was seen swimming frantically from person to person in the water trying to lead them to Jesus before the hypothermia became fatal and he succumbed to death. Mr. Harper swam up to one young man who had climbed up on a piece of debris from the sunken ship. Rev. Harper asked him between labored breaths, "Are you saved?" The young man replied that he was not.

Harper then tried to lead him to Christ only to have the young man who was near shock, reply “no”. John Harper then took off his life jacket and threw it to the young man and said "Here then, you need this more than I do..." and swam away to help other people. A few minutes later Harper swam back to the young man to try again and this time succeeded in leading him to salvation as death neared. Of the 1528 people that went into the water that night, only six were rescued by the lifeboats that came back. One of them was this young man on the debris that had been saved by John Harper. At 2:20 am on April 15, 1912, the Titanic sank into the sea and was lost along with more than 1500 lives …. 2 hours and 40 minutes after striking the iceberg.

Four years later, at a survivors meeting, this young man stood up and in tears recounted how John Harper had led him to Christ. He retold the story of John throwing his life vest at him and how Mr. Harper had tried to swim back to help other people, but because of the intense cold, had, himself, grown too weak to swim. His last words before going under in the frigid waters were "Believe on the Name of the Lord Jesus and you will be saved." Does Hollywood or history remember this man? No. Oh well, no matter.

Only 705 people were reported saved on that night, but how many were actually “saved” by John Harper before dying in the waters of the North Atlantic Ocean.

This servant of God did what he had to do. While other people were trying to buy their way onto the lifeboats and selfishly trying to save their own lives, John Harper gave up his life so that others could be saved.

So, there were no real heroes on the night the Titanic sunk into the cold, dark water or were there? Did history forget someone important in the telling and retelling of that night?

I encourage you to read the book entitled: “Titanic’s Last Hero – Story about John Harper” by Moody Adams