Eva Hart as child
Eva Miriam Hart, born 31 January, 1905 in Ilford, London, England, traveled along with her parents, Benjamin Hart and Esther Bloomfield, on the RMS Titanic. They boarded as 2nd Class Passengers on Ticket #13529. While Eva and her mother survived the disaster, her father didn't.
Eva passed away on 14 February, 1996 in Chadwell Heath, London, England as one of the last survivors with memories of the Titanic.
About
Eva was sleeping when the Titanic struck the iceberg. He father rushed into her cabin to alert her and her mother, and after wrapping her in a blanket, carried her to the boat deck. He placed her and her mother in Lifeboat 14 and told her to "hold mummy's hand and be a good girl." It was the last time she would ever see him.
- "In a 1993 interview"
Eva and her mother were rescued up by the RMS Carpathia and arrived in New York City on April 18th. Soon after, they returned to England and her mother remarried. Eva was plagued with nightmares and upon the death of her mother when she was 23, she confronted her fears head on by returning to the sea and locking herself in a cabin for four straight days until the nightmares went away.
Eva Hart at older age
Eva was one of the most outspoken survivors concerning the Titanic's lack of sufficient lifeboats and of any salvage attempts of the Titanic after its discovery in 1985. She commonly criticised the White Star Line for failing to provide enough lifeboats for all aboard the Titanic.
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When salvaging efforts began in 1987, Eva was quick to note that the Titanic was a grave site and should be treated as such. She often decried the "insensitivity and greed" and labeled the salvers "fortune hunters, vultures, pirates, and grave robbers."
Eva was largely vocal in numerous interviews about the ship having broken in half, a hotly debated rumor that was later proven to be true after the discovery of the wreck site. She was also adamant regarding the controversy surrounding the SS Californian, a ship that was only a few miles from the Titanic which failed to respond to distress rockets and calls for help. She claimed the vessel was less than ten miles from Titanic, not nineteen as was previously believed.
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Eva maintained very active in Titanic-related activities well into her 80s. In 1982, Eva returned to the United States and joined several other survivors at a Titanic Historical Society convention commemorating the 70th anniversary of the sinking. She participated in three more conventions in 1987, 1988, and in 1992. In 1994, Eva wrote an autobiography, Shadow of the Titanic - A Survivor's Story, in which she described her experiences aboard the ship and the lasting implications of its sinking. On April 15, 1995, the 83rd anniversary of the disaster, she and fellow second class Titanic survivor Edith Eileen Haisman, dedicated a memorial garden plaque on the grounds of the National Maritime Museum in London.
Videos
Eva Hart speaks about her memories of the Titanic . . survivor interview
Template:Titanic last survivors
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Sources
- Eva Hart at Wikipedia
- Eva Miriam Hart at Titanic-Titanic.com
- Eva Hart at Encyclopedia Titanica