Fredrick Wright was Titanic's Squash Court instructor.
Frederick Wright was born in late 1888 in Great Billing, Northamptonshire, England. His parents were William Wright and Esther Harlot. His father was a shoemaker. Frederick grew up in a very large family. He had no less than 14 siblings. At some point it must have been too many children to take care of, so Wright moved in with a much older brother, who was married. After having attended school at the age of 12, he soon left to be a servant in the household.
He worked on Olympic just before he signed-on to her sister ship on April 14. At the time, he lived in London. As the Squash Racquet Court attendent, he received a weekly wage of £1.
On April 14, Titanic had hit an iceberg late at night. Famous First Class passenger Colonel Archibald Gracie noted in his book, that he wrote shortly after the disaster, that he and Wright had made an appointment for the next morning, but due to the Squash Court's flooding around 12:15 A.M, he spoke to Frederick, saying that they should better cancel their plans. Wright, who could not swim and knew that the squash court he manned and his cabin had been flooded, simply replied: "Yes, we better."
He didn't survive. His body was lost to the sea.
His death has inspired squash players in Philadelphia to hold a squash competition, the Fred Wright Memorial Cup, in his memory.