Violet Madeline Mellinger onboard RMS Oceanic in August 1912, on a postcard
Violet Madeline Mellinger was a thirteen-year-old girl when she was a passenger on Titanic.
Early life[]
Violet Madeline Mellinger was born in Essex, England on February 22, 1899. Her mother was Elizabeth Anne Maidment. Her father was Claude Leinard Deschamps Mellinger and had been a clerk as well as a journalist in Londons Street Fleet. Violet was often adressed by her middle name, Madeline.
Violet's mother had given birth to 4 other children. The first two were elder brothers of Violet: Eugenie Claudine Emily, born in 1895 and one year later followed by Alexander Leinard Deschamps. As a middle child, Violet also had a younger brother and sister. They were Edmund Reginald, Constance Sylvia, conceived in 1900 and 1904 respectively.
Between 1908 and 1910, Claude Mellinger left for Australia after being involved in a financial scandal. He broke off all contact with his wife and sons and daughters, who now had to look for work to provide for her family. Meanwhile, Violet was given lessons on a girl's school in Wimbledon, nearby London, seperated from her siblings. They were scattered as several different relatives of Elizabeth would take them in their care.
Elizabeth wanted to take a job as housekeeper for the American family Colgate in Benningtom, Vermont. She had seen an advertisment that offered this funtion. This family of stature had founded the toothpaste brand that we know today.
Titanic[]
One day Elizabeth came from Southampton to the school to bring Violet some news. Violet was told to make preparations to get to Southampton by Wednesday, because they would go aboard Titanic to travel to America. It would be her first time to take voyage on a ship. She had seen the large passenger liners before at the coast in Bournemouth, but this was something quite different. She was nothing less than thrilled by the prospect of taking voyage with this magnificent new liner. She and her mother travelled in Second Class to meet the new employers in the States. Violet's cabin was on starboard side on E-Deck, to her own account. She was amazed by the luxury and elegance. The ship sailed out on the 10th of April. Violet was 13 years old during the Maiden Voyage.
Come sunday afternoon, April 14, they went to their cabin to do their dressing up. Then they took the elevator and arrived at the Second Class Dining Saloon. Violet remembers seeing a man with two toddlers. It turned out to be Michel Navratil and his sons that would later be named: 'the Titanic Orphans', since their father was lost in the sinking and it was unknown who the mother was, untill she found out via the newspapers that her boys where on the ship. But he had taken the alias of Hoffman. Walking through a large hallway, she saw Captain Smith, who reminded her of king Edward VII because of the beard and that's how she later knew for sure it was him. She asked a steward what he and other crew members were doing there and she was told that they did inspections of the watertight doors.
A superintendent of the Fillmore Farms also took voyage on Titanic. His name was Charles Cresson Jones. He was a First Class passenger, but he went to Second Class to see Elizabeth and showed them pictures of Bennington. Madeline hoped that somehow the wealthy Mr. Jones would become her stepfather.
Later that afternoon, a church service was held and she enjoyed the singing very much. After that, she and her mother were on deck for a stroll but soon they felt it was too cold and would retire to their cabin. Still inspired, she was singing 'For those in peril of the sea' in her bunk. She had been gifted a book with Anglican prayers and songs as well.
When Titanic hit the iceberg in the late night, she and her mother had noticed it for a moment but decided to sleep through it, when they later heard a loud bang on their door and a steward calling them, advising them to get warmly dressed, collect their lifebelts and appear on the Boat Deck. She and her mother had managed to do so, but in a hurry.
Once on deck, they were quickly grabbed and left the sinking ship in lifeboat 14, which wasn't nearly filled to capacity. Violet lost her precious comforting doll Brickle in the sinking, she remembered that it was still next to her berth in a net when she left her cabin. Even in her seventies, she was still haunted by the image of her beloved doll sitting alone forever in the dark ocean.
From the boat, she gazed at the ship as she remembered the rockets shooting off from the ship, looking for somebody to come and help them and she saw her lights one by one dipping under. She heard the downright terrifying screams when all the people got into the water when the ship sunk underneath them. Violet was brave enough to watch. The people around her tried to fool her into thinking it was just singing, as Violet later told in her own words. She also found the starlit sky to be very dark with very bright stars. The cold was cutting through her and especially her mother suffered bad, as Elizabeth wasn't wearing any shoes.
After the sinking[]
Later, the Mellingers were told to climb from lifeboat 14 to lifeboat 12 to create room so Fifth Officer Lowe could go back for a search and rescue mission. At 6:00 A.M, they found Collapsible B. Elizabeth was getting cold herself but still helped the tired Second Officer, Charles Lightoller, who had balanced this overturned boat to save 30 men, who were later rescued when Lightoller drew their attention with his wistle and were now taken aboard the other lifeboats. The boats now had to wait for rescue, which came later. Elizabeth tried to get his blood circulation running, by rubbing as he was cold and had been helping evacuation in thin clothes, to then end up in the water and climbing on the floating, overturned boat B.
When their boat was at the Carpathia, Madeline had been hauled up on deck separately from Elizabeth. By the time she settled, her mother had already been taken away. Onboard the Carpathia, Madeline frantically rushed around the decks trying to find her mother who had been taken to the ship’s hospital unconscious with hypothermia and frostbite on her feet. She must have forgotten to put on her shoes when she left her cabin. Madeline would write that her mother suffered a nervous reaction during most of her life and “lost her hearing due to the shock.” Upon meeting him again on the Carpathia, Elizabeth received a thanks from Lightoller and he gave her his whistle as a token of his gratitude.
Charles Cresson Jones didn't survive the disaster. After disembarking from Carpathia in New York, they met up with the now widowed wife of Mr. Jones in Bennington. They returned to England after that.
Later life[]
In 1915 she and her mother migrated to Canada to settle in Toronto. There, Violet got married to banker David Daniel Mann on October 1st, 1921. They had 4 children together, which were all sons: Alex, Bill, Don and Carl. In the meantime, she had changed her name to the more French-looking Madeleine Violette.
On 15 April 1939, Madeline and her mother would have a Titanic reunion dinner at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto. Fellow Titanic survivors Emma Bliss and John Collins would be there too.
In the 1950s, Madeline helped Walter Lord with his reseach for his famous book, 'A Night to Remember', by relating her memories. She also felt he was the right person to give him Lightoller's whistle. In the 1970s, she was present at the Titanic Historical Society convention.
Madeleine died on May 27, 1976 in Toronto. She was cremated near Welland, Ontario at an Anglican Cemetery. Her widower David would live on untill he passed on 1 October 1, 1994.
Sources[]
- 'De Titanic, de ware verhalen' (2012) Edward P. De Groot