Lifeboat 12

Lifeboat 12
Lifeboat 12 as it is hoisted aboard the Carpathia
Type	Standard
Location on deck	Port aft
Time when launched from Titanic	1:20 A.M.
Launched by officers	Wilde, Lightoller
Capacity	65
Estimated occupancy at launch	30
Estimated occupancy at rescue	55 - 60
Previous lifeboat launched	14
Next lifeboat launched	9

Lifeboat 12 was the fifth boat lowered on the port side and the ninth in general, following lifeboat 14. Lifeboat 12 was placed on the aft Second Class Promenade Deck on the Boat Deck, between lifeboats 14 and 10.

Her story

Lifeboat 12's descent began at 1:20 A.M. It would seem likely that most of the passengers in this boat were Second Class ladies. There was also the Dean family from Third Class. Frederick Charles Clench was given the command, aided by sailor John Poingdestre, who later manned it. Main Officer Henry Wilde and Second Officer Charles Lightoller oversaw the launch. Third Class passenger Miss Dagmar Bryhl was seperated from her brother despite her pleas during the loading, as she later described.

As it made it's high drop down the black wall of the slanted vessel, 30 people were estimated to be occupying her. One of them had taken a leap as it had gone past B-Deck. Difficulty was encountered in unhooking the boat from the falls. Seaman Poingdestre used a knife to cut the ropes.

She made a later rendez-vous with lifeboat 14, who was taken away 5 minutes before her. They met up after Titanic was gone and other boats were in the vicinity as well. This was ideal for Fifth Officer Lowe, who controlled boat 14. He had planned to clear his boat and let other boats, who had open spots, take over some of his occupants so he could go and search for a sign of life, as people were suffering in the cold waters. Lifeboat 12 had at least three ladies who had moved from 14: Bertha Ilett, as well as Elizabeth Mellinger and her daughter Violet and likely around 10 others. Furthermore, Collapsible D gave her a few crewmembers.

Second Officer Lightoller, who had overseen the launch of 12, had been washed off the ship and was balancing on the overturned Collapsible B with about 20 other men. He had blown his whistle to attract attention of other boats. Lifeboat 4 responded and managed to pick up the men from their dire situation and lifeboat 12 helped as well, she had 5 more crewmembers extra after the rescue, one notable being Chief Baker Joughin who had spent a long time in the water before he got to boat B.

At 8:30 P.M, Carpathia received the boat as probably the last. It now had a number closer to her capacity: roughly 60 or perhaps a little bit less. Lifeboat 12 was emptied of its human cargo who were all brought safely aboard. Then, the boat itself was taken aboard and photographed.

Occupants

• Frederick Charles Clench ------- Able Seaman (in charge)
• John Poingdestre -------------- Able Seaman (in charge later)
• Mary Sloan* --------------------Stewardess
• Miss Lillian W. Bentham* --------Second Class Passenger
• Dagmar Bryhl ------------------ Second Class Passenger
• Florentina Duran y More* ------- Second Class Passenger
• Miss Asuncion Duran y More* ---- Second Class Passenger
• Lutie Davis Parrish -------------- Second Class Passenger
• Miss Alice Phillips ---------------Second Class Passenger
• Miss Emily Rugg* (10?) -----------Second Class Passenger
• Imanita Parrish Shelley---------- Second Class Passenger
• Lyyli Karoliina Silvén* ----------- Second Class Passenger
• Mrs. Florence L. Ware* ---------- Second Class Passenger
• Mrs. Eva Dean ------------------ Third Class Passenger
• Bertram Dean -------------------Third Class Passenger
• Millvina Dean --------------------Third Class Passenger
• Florence Thorneycroft* ----------Third Class Passenger

  

  Position of lifeboat 12 on the ship

Transferred from lifeboat 14

• Bertha Ilett ---------------------- Second Class Passenger
• Elizabeth Mellinger -------------- Second Class Passenger
• Violet Madeleiner Mellinger ------- Second Class Passenger

Transferred from Collapsible D

Collapsible B rescuees

• Charles Lightoller --------------- Second Officer (took charge when he arrived)
• Charles John Joughin----------- Chief Baker
• Cecil William Fitzpatrick ----------Engineer's Mess Steward
• Jack Thayer ---------------------First Class Passenger
• Patrick O’Keeffe* -----------------Third Class Passenger

_{* = not certain}

Popular culture

A Night to Remember (1958)

Lifeboat 10, 12 and 14 being loaded, as seen in A Night to Remember (1958)

In A Night to Remember, Lifeboat 12 is seen several times. Some of the passengers like Ida Straus and Mrs. Clarke refused to take their seats on boat 12 because they didn't want to leave their husbands.

After the Titanic sank Fifth Officer Harold Lowe assembled lifeboats 12 with 14, and transferred some of the passengers from his sloop to lifeboat 12. While first class passenger Edith Louise Rosenbaum entertained the children in the lifeboat with her Lucky Pig.

Before dawn, Second Officer Charles Lightoller, who had survived with several of the other passengers by straddling the upturned lifeboat Collapsible B, used his officer whistle to summon lifeboat 12.

The crew and passengers on lifeboat 12 agreed to return to rescue the passengers on Collapsible B, including Lightoller, Col. Archibald Gracie, Patrick Murphy and Martin Gallagher.

1996 Miniseries Titanic

Lifeboat 12 and 14 being loaded, as seen in the 1996 Miniseries Titanic

In the 1996 miniseries, Jamie Perse helped launch boat 12 when 2nd Officer Lightoller struggled to block a crowd of passengers who insisted on getting on the boat. A man then jumped into the boat, causing Jamie to slip into boat 12, breaking his back.

Titanic (1997)

Lifeboat 12 being loaded, as seen in the 1997 film Titanic

In the 1997 film, when situation began to escalate, Second Officer Lightoller was a little overwhelmed by filling lifeboat 12, forcing many women to get into the lifeboat and leaving their husbands.

A woman asked Lightoller to hold the lifeboat for a while because she wanted to return to her cabin for a while, but Lightoller ignored her request and immediately dropped her into the lifeboat.

Then the ship's designer, Thomas Andrews, arrived to reprimand Lightoller for half filling the lifeboats. Lightoller reasoned that the lifeboat might be buckle if it was overfilled. Thomas immediately denied that and said that the boats had been tested in Belfast with a weight of 70 men, thus ordering Lightoller to fill the lifeboats completely.

After the Titanic sank, Lifeboat 12 was among the lifeboats that Fifth Officer Lowe gathered and transferred some of the passengers from his boat so that he could use his boat to get back to pick up the survivors.

Fictional Occupants

1. Jamie Perse

Sources

^{https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZpjX-av5xM - Titanic Lifeboat No. 12 | Port Side - channel of MBTubes Biographies -}