George Taylor was a Fireman on the Titanic.
Background[]
George Taylor was delivered in Southampton on the 15th of December, 1888. He had a father from Blackpool, Lancashire: Thomas Taylor. Father Thomas had a wife in 1882. She went by the name Eliza Sibley and he tied the knot with her in South Stoneham. Eliza was from Southampton originally and had dropped 6 children by 1904, of which George was the third. His two elder brothers were William Henry, born in 1884 and James, who had popped up in 1886. George had three younger siblings. Annie Dorothy was the first daughter brought into the family in 1900, with sister Mary Margaret turning up in 1902. In 1904, Charles Thomas revealed himself.
In the early 1890s, the Taylors were domiciled in Wallsend, Northumberland. They had gotten back to Southampton 10 years later. George wed Elizabeth Potter in Southampton in 1908. Somewhere in Southampton, they were taken in and paid rent for their home.
Three girls sprung from their love. Dorothy Florence came into view in 1909, Margaret Elizabeth came onto this world in 1910 and Rosina Lillian left the womb in 1911. In those days, George had picked up work as a stoker and Elizabeth was a laundry worker.
Titanic[]
On 6 April 1912, when was 23 years old, George joined his new ship, RMS Titanic of The White Star Line, ready for its Maiden Voyage. He came over from the Balmoral Castle. For some reason, he gave up a false identity, namely that of his elder brother James. Therefore, for the time on his passage, he was known as James Taylor. ‘James’ was scheduled for the shifts from 12:00-4:00 P.M. and from 12:00-4:00 A.M and therefore was to stay in one of the berths on F-Deck. Titanic’s moorings were cast off on the 10th of April, when she commenced with her trip to New York out of Southampton harbor.
On the night of April 14, two lookouts, Frederick Fleet and Reginald Lee, were stationed in the crow’s nest of the Titanic. Their task of discerning objects out of the horizon was made difficult by the fact that the ocean was unusually calm that night: because there would be little water breaking at its base, an iceberg would be more difficult to spot. This exactly what caused Titanic’s voyage to be disrupted at 11:40 P.M. An iceberg was sighted ever so sudden and Fleet telephoned the bridge. The Officer on Watch ordered the wheelman to go hard-a-starboard with the engines reversed.
The Titanic began to turn to port but it had already reached the iceberg and ran against it on starboard side. Unfortunately, her damage was beneath the water line and over a hundred meters of her hull, there were ruptured parts of the hull ruptured, which led the ocean into her compartments.
The hit got George out of his sleep and he left the Firemen’s berths, to get to the Forward Well Deck and waited their quietly, listening and watching. A Leading Fireman ordered him up to the Boat Deck.
When he got there, his desingated boat, number 5, was getting ready to take on passengers. He was instead called by an Officer to get into another boat. With only 11 others, he made his way off the ship around 1:00 A.M in the starboard Emergancy Cutter, lifeboat 1. This boat was released from the ship in a hurry and could easily have taken 45 people. George was in that boat with lots of other stokers, a trimmer, the First Class pair of Cosmo and Lady Christina Duff-Gordon with their maid Laura Francatelli as well as Abraham Salomon and Henry Stengel and the command was bestowed upon Lookout George Symons, who had Albert Horswill for company.
Much later, Titanic crumbled when the lights went out and the ship tore itself in two. Her stern was upheaveled in the star-lit skies after her front section had dipped under. At 2:20 A.M, Titanic’s stern was wrecked and flooded. Nobody would be able to see the Titanic again after that, for many decades. James could hear the cries of the people who were in the water, lasting more than 10 minutes. The water was very cold, which cost the majority of lives that were left when Titanic had gone away from them. There were many deaths to be moarned.
After the sinking[]
The attention of the Carpathia had been drawn via the wireless. Carpathia’s operater had notified the captain and at 4:00 A.M, Carpathia was there, at the place that Titanic had been, according to given coordinates. On board, Cosmo Duff-Gordon gifted every stoker or trimmer £5. Emergancy Cutter 1 was at the rescue ship 10 to 15 minutes after her arrival,
Carpathia’s arrival in New York was on the 18th of April. George got back to Southampton shortly after that.
In Southampton, he was interviewed by somebody who said he came on behalf of Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon and asked for a statement from George. They were at the The White Star Line quarters at Trafalgar Chambers. George made a statement at request and the representative gave him a receipt, which George believed to be for the promised sum of 5 pounds, which was one pound less than an average White Star Line Fireman would make in a month. George only got 7 shillings instead, a day’s pay.
A lot of controversy was surrounding lifeboat 1, which was dubbed ‘the money boat’. The rich First Class passenger Cosmo-Duff Gordon had seemingly bribed the crewmen to not get any ideas of hauling more people from the water into the boat, by giving each of them 5 pounds, which was close to a months’ wage for most. Cosmo Duff-Gordon himself said he did it out of sympathy for the sailors and stokers whose payment would be stopped as soon as Titanic had settled, but the British Wreck Comminsiors wanted to know further details.
George was asked a few questions as well, as he sat in the Scottish Drill Hall in London, on the 17th of May. They also wanted an explanation for the moment he met that one man at Trafalgal Chambers. George explained that Lady Duff-Gordon talked of the boat being swamped if they were to go back. He himself would not have opposed to look for swimmers, but was not assertive in any way.
Later life[]
Still living in Southampton, George would make more crossings as a crewman. His wife had given him two sons as well. In 1913, Frederick George was their first boy, with Robert being next in 1915.
On December 28, 1931 George’s life ended at the very young age of 43, in Southampton. What caused him to kick the bucket so soon is not stated. He was giving a resting place at Old Common Cemetery.
Elizabeth would continue her life and was alive for the last time in September 1967.