James Gordon Partridge Bisset (July 15th, 1883 - March 28th, 1967) was the second officer onboard the RMS Carpathia on April 14th 1912 when it rescued the survivors from the RMS Titanic disaster. He would later go on to serve as the commodore of the Cunard Line from 1944 to 1947.
He also wrote many books and auto-biographies.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Bisset was born in Liverpool, Merseryside, England on July 15th 1883 to his parents, James Smith Bisset and Sarah Ellen Butler. He was the second of six children. Bisset would attend the St Saviour's Infant School and later the Grandby Street Board School. During 1897 at the age of fourteen, Bisset would be apprenticed to be an office clerk of the Liverpool branch of London and Provincial Marine Insurance Company.
He listened to sea-stories by one of the close friends to the Bisset family, and was so astonished that he would decide to stowaway on a wind-jammer to experience the sea in 1897, however he was discovered and he returned home. After he got home, he would be apprenticed by the Anglo-American Oil Company to become a junior clerk at the Liverpool office. But later would become lethargic of his position.
Shipping Career[]
So in 1898, he was contracted to work as an ordinary seamen for the William Thomas & Co., Ltd. of Liverpool with a four-year apprenticeship. He later set sail from Liverpool on the County of Pembroke scheduled to be a ten-month voyage. Bisset gained extra knowledge and experience in navigation and seamanship in his two years and seven weeks aboard the County of Pembroke. On his third voyage aboard the ship in late 1902, Bisset completed his four-year apprenticeship and he earned posting as an able-bodied seaman, he would later earn third mate.
Carpathia[]
During his Naval Training, Bisset was posted Second Officer aboard the RMS Carpathia, again serving under Captain Rostron. The Carpathia left from New York on April 11th bound for Fiume, Austria-Hungary, the first three days of the voyage went uneventful for Bisset. When on April 15th, Bisset would be on deck with First Officer Dean and Third Officer Rees when Carpathia's wireless operator Harold Thomas Cottam came up on deck to report about a distress call from the Titanic. The officers, including Bisset would laugh at Cottam and say that he fell victim to a joke, and that the Titanic wasn’t sinking.
However Cottam would rush towards the captain’s cabin, and Dean and Bisset would chase after him, but it was too late, as Cottam already barged into the Rostron’s cabin and woke him. Rostron then told Dean and Bisset to rush to Titanic’s aid, Carpathia would then be on their way to Titanic, Bisset would save around 710 survivors from the sinking. As Carpathia would turn around and return to New York, reaching it on April 18th, 1912.
After Carpathia[]
After Bisset’s payoff from the Carpathia and his additional Naval Training, Bisset rejoined Cunard’s Caronia as First Officer. As he would marry May Hodgson on June 28th 1913. As he was promoted to lieutenant in the RNR on May 28th 1914, and would once again serve aboard the Caronia during World War 1. As he was transferred to the famous RMS Mauretania.
After the war, he was promoted to Chief Officer aboard Cunard’s Carmania during two of the ships voyages. And subsequently returned to cargo services in the Cunard Line on August 1919 on the small tramp steamer Verbania. In May 1920, he returned to the Mauretania as a Senior First Officer. A post he held through the rest of 1920 and 1921, until November 1921, when he joined Cunard’s Canadian Service, where he signed on as First Officer aboard the new Albania.
Portrayals[]
S.O.S. Titanic (1979)[]
2nd Officer Jimmy Bisset portrayed by Charles Bolton in the 1979 TV film S.O.S. Titanic.
Titanic (1997 film)[]
| “ |
We’re doing all we can. |
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—James Bisset to passenger. | ||
A possible appearance of Bisset in the 1997 film is when Cal was looking for Rose, He is first seen talking to a passenger who’s husband and/or son had perished onboard the Titanic when it sank.
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