Charles Olive was a Greaser on the Titanic.
Background[]
The life of Charles Olive started in Southampton, where the shipping business was booming. The first time Charles was seen was January 3, 1881. Harry Olive, the man who begot him together with Henrietta Rickman, was a workman in the rail transportation industry. Henrietta was a tailoress. Both were Sontonians by birth and they would spend most of their young life there and pledged the vows there as well. They also brought three other children into existance. Their first squirt was Harry Richard James, whose crib was laid in 1879. Charles was the second and in 1882, he had his first sister, Lilian Maud. A younger brother came also into view in 1884: Albert George.
In 1881, the family had their home in Saint Mary. Harry was no longer alive in 1887 and a man who also had been segregated from his partner by her expertation, Frederick Doel, had taken them into their home by 1891, with Henrietta functioning as a helpmate for chores. Something grew between Mr. Doel and the former Mrs Olive. Their blooming love resulted in a good number of stepsiblings for Charles, which kicked off with the arrival of Frederick and Alfred James. They would carry the name Olive Doel as they weren’t born within wedlock. With much regret though, Alfred, who was given to them in 1891, died that same year. Frederick, who had popped up in 1889, did survive. Of his younger brothers, Albert was taken out of their lives in 1892, the same year that Arthur Thomas came into view, Henriettea was wifed by Frederick in 1892, also in Southampton.
In 1893, the two newlyweds were blessed with William Henry, only to lose him again the next year, which was the year of Lucy Violet, 1894. Charles and Lucy would see many siblings come and go. Perhaps he didn’t see everyone, as he was gone from the new address that had been registered for Mr and Mrs. Doel in 1901. The amount of deaths that the family had to endure was immense. What could cause it is not stated, but the next 5 children, that followed Lucy, who did survive, where all gone within one year or the next.
The names of the poor children that weren’t viable and departed from earth were: Albert Edward, who was from 1896, Daisy Winifred, who livened things up very shortly in 1897, which was Albert’s last year, before 1898 came, a very dark year for the family once more when not only Daisy passed away, but also Cecil James, who was next.
Norman Charles was the one exception whose fate was not determined way too soon. He actually would go on to live a long life since 1902, preceeding William Kildonan whose passing in the same year of conception, had given them the last big heartbreak, for the time being. Henrietta would now have just 3 children from her former love Harry: Henry, Charles and Albert, while just 4 of the brood that stemmed from Frederick were still standing: Frederick, Arthur, Lucy and Norman.
In the meantime Charles was also getting entangled. Rosina Channell was her name, also from this town and produced one son in 1908, who also bore Charles’ name, his middle name being Frederick. They were unlucky in procreation as well. He reamined their only boy and was only with them for a couple of weeks, before going into the eternal.
In 1911, Rosina was housed in the same street as Charles‘ elders, so they were neighbours but Charles was probably on the alkaline abyss as he was not nearby.
Titanic[]
Charles was groomed enough to be included in the Engineering Crew of one fabulous ship, the finest ship, nearly ready for North Atlantic travel. She was the RMS Titanic and was she was massive. As much as 33 Greasers were needed, since her engines inside were just about as imposing as her exterior and would need a few people to ensure they engaged slickly. Their were liquids that needed to be poured in openings. As a Greaser, Olive would have a berth on G-Deck. The Greasers made a few nice bucks, but they were sleeping secluded from other Engineering Crew.
Olive was no stranger to the White Star Line. Just before, he could be seen on the Oceanic. Titanic had an unexpected rendezvous with her on April 10, when that ship was idle and Titanic was steaming out of her dock. Oceanic's comate, the SS New York, had been sent into a skid by Titanic's forward thrust, combined with one of her engines going in reverse to make a sharp corner. Oceanic was an innocent bystander as she was strung to New York but her boarding plank still sank. The New York was caught in the draft of Titanic's propellors and it was just inchwork to ensure she was not slamming into her flank. This was giving some people second thoughts about this brandnew mammoth.
Charles would not be a stranger to some of Titanic’s crew. None other than Frederick Olive Doel was onboard, his half-brother. Frederick was a Fireman. Frederick senior and Henrietta had also had a paying guest in house. He was David Matherson and he was an Able Seaman on this gigantic ship. Both men were from different White Star Liners, David had come over from the equally tremendous Olympic, while Frederick had been on the Adriatic lately.
Although she wasn’t built with the ultimate speed in mind, Titanic was anything but a slow vessel. She had rounded off her layovers in two other ports well within 2 days when the Atlantic Ocean had to be crossed for getting to New York. Her owner wanted to see how she would conduct at higher velocity. The Titanic could reach 24 knots at her best, which was a great speed for that time. On the 14th of April, she was put through the test and her engines were bumped up to 22,5 knots.
Despite the fact that the crew had counted on meeting some ice on the way, they never were prepared to get face to face with it in such a small proximity. It was 11:39 when the ship’s bell resonated three times. One lookout wised up the bridge with the telephone. Before the call was finished, the First Officer had sprung into action to sheer the ship off to port. The Engine Room was alerted with the telegraph. Charles could have been working here. They had to get Titanic in a backwards course, to restrain her forward movement. They had less than a minute to get it done, which was a very narrow operating window. Titanic only started to point to port side seconds before she reached the floater.
It came to a percussion, but not the hardest one, rather a slight and fleeting touch from the side. Titanic however still moved forward and the ice digged into her metal strips to cause percolation in the bow on starboard and slightly abaft of the bridge. Metal was bent and twisted and tons of water found its way into the skin, onto the lower decks.
Captain Smith was antsy when he trotted onto the bridge. He was conscious of a hit and demanded to know what. When he learnt it was an iceberg, he had adjured men to scope the area that had been infringed. Any thought that the ship could be saved or was unsinkable was invalidated by her most important designer, who was also aboard. At midnight, April 15, he had pressed the Captain with ominous words after seeing what went down, far belowdecks. Smith had to get people off the ship, but there were only enough boats for half, if filled to the brim with people. Smith gathered his men and gave them this assignment.
The Deck Crew didn’t use their time well. It was 2 hours later when still two boats needed to be taken down. Not enough people were resecued in the other boats either. Titanic’s sinking had progressed far. The water was practically at their feet on the highest deck. Titanic then soused with a more brisk onrush. The boats were no longer in control and the ship delved deeper under the surface. The water was more damaging and destroyed the First Class dome, as well as a funnel.
As the minutes ticked off, Titanic’s buyoancy was clearly a lost case. With one end sticking up in the starlighted sky, while the other was pushed further down, she was half inundated by 2:18 A.M. What was then displayed was a battle between water, air and gravity. The tail end of the ship was also holding very heavy machinery. The burden on the structure was immense and the ship couldn’t deal with it, so apart from the keel, it dicotomized. The two large hulls were absorbed by the sea 2 minutes later.
Olive’s life would hang in the balance for sure. There was no space on a lifeboat for him. Most Greasers found their maker that night, with Olive being no exception. There was no body for his family to bury either. One slightly bright rim of hope was that Frederick Doel, the Fireman, had escaped the ship with his life intact.
After his death[]
The loss of his son affected father Frederick so deeply that his health declined rapidly. It went so far downhill with him, that he indirectly became another victim of the Titanic through his infelicity when the news of Charles’ death hit him.
Hardship would hardly ever land so many blows on any individual as it did to his mother Henrietta Doel. Many little ones and also her very own partner, must take a toll on someone. Nevertheless, she hadn't given up on love and was espoused with a man named George Coles, in the first year of the First World War, 1914. Things wouldn't have been easy for Rosina Olive either. The next year saw her take a new bidie-in and she finally had a child of her own, who was seen for the first time in 1922.
Henrietta lived on until 1938. Southampton would be her resting place, she had never turned her back on the town.
The same was true for Rosina Coles. Her last days were spent there in 1941.