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| Previous Commands of Captain Edward Smith |
Edward John Smith
Born: January 27, 1850 in Staffordshire, England
Died: April 15, 1912, lost at sea - age 62
Died: April 15, 1912, lost at sea - age 62
Employer:
Oceanic Steam Navigation Company, owner of The White Star Line. See link in right sidebar for White Star Line's history. It may surprise you when you see the name they use today to operate the cruise line.
Last Rank:
- Captain (1887-1912)
- Honorary rank of Commodore (1904-1912) as the most senior captain at White Star Line.
Nickname: The Millionaire's Captain
Salary: up to his death on April 15, 1912, he received double the salary of all other White Star Line Captains - £105 per month with a guaranteed annual of £1250.
Catherine Hancock, (nee Marsh 1808-1893) and Edward Smith (1804-1864), shopkeepers.
- Half-brother - Joseph Hancock (b. 1832- 1893), Captain of the Senator Weber. He married Susanna Wrench and they had 5 children.
- March 30, 1912. Despite several incidents at sea, Captain Smith was appointed to command the RMS Titanic. Rumors began to circulate that this would be his last command before his retirement. However, there was one newspaper article published the day before sailing that claimed he would remain in charge of Titanic until White Star Line completed their next steamer. The rumor would take center stage during crew testimony at the inquest.
- April 1, 1912. Titanic's Sea Trials were postponed for 24 hours due to bad weather.
- 6am, April 2, 1912. Titanic's sea trials were conducted for 12 hours in Belfast Lough, then in the Irish Sea. On board were Captain Smith; 41 members of the crew including galley and bakers, but no domestic staff; 78 stokers and firemen; Thomas Andrews (the ship's designer from Harland and Wolff); Edward Wildling (from Harland and Wolff); Harold Sanderson (a representative of J P Morgan of International Maritime Marine Company who owned part of White Star Line); wireless operators Jack Phillips and Harold Bride; and Francis Carruthers (a surveyor from the Board of Trade). J Bruce Ismay and Lord Pirrie were not able to attend. Titanic was tested at different speeds, stopping, turning, and a crash stop where the engines were reversed from full ahead to full astern to test the stopping times. Titanic passed her trials and was awarded a Seaworthy Certificate, valid for 12 months.
- 7am, April 10, 1912. Captain Smith arrived on Titanic one hour prior to the Board of Trade muster which was scheduled for 8am. He reviewed the sailing report he received from his First Officer William Murdoch. A change in officers caused a change in everyone's duties. Henry Tingle Wilde was transferred from the RMS Olympic to Titanic as Chief Mate. The previous Chief Mate William McMaster Murdock was bumped down to First Officer. First Officer Charles Lightoller was bumped down to Second Officer. David Blair, the original Second Officer was replaced by Herbert Pitman who was the only officer who wasn't in the Royal Naval Reserve. Total crew members: approximately 885.
- 9:30am, Wednesday, April 10, 1912. Passengers began boarding at Southampton until 11am. Departure was set for Noon.
- 12Noon. Wednesday, April 10, 1912. Departure from Southampton dock before heading to Cherbourg France was almost another blemish on Captain Smith's record.
- 1pm, Wednesday, April 10, 1912 - Titanic's departure from Southampton was delayed one hour while the SS New York was towed out of the way. Five tugboats then navigated Titanic to Nab Lightship, then toward the English Channel. Titanic traveled the 89 miles to Cherbourg, France, a voyage that should have taken about four hours but the weather was windy so Titanic didn't push the speed.
- 6:35pm, Wednesday, April 10, 1912 - Titanic arrived at Cherbourg, France. Because the port didn't have docking facilities for a ship as large as Titanic, White Star Line transferred passengers on two tenders - the SS Traffic (for Third Class passengers) and the SS Nomadic (for First and Second Class passengers).
- 8 pm, Wednesday, April 10, 1912 - Titanic left Cherbourg, France to its next port, Queenstown, Ireland. They were due to arrive the next morning.
- 11:30am, Thursday, April 11, 1912 - Titanic arrived at Cork Harbor, Ireland. Tenders were again used to transfer passengers from dock to ship.
- 1:30pm, Thursday, April 11, 1912 - Titanic left Queenstown, Ireland with her course set to arrive in New York City on the morning of April 17, 1912.
The fire below deck continued to burn and wasn't totally extinguished until April 14.
Last Rank:
- Captain (1887-1912)
- Honorary rank of Commodore (1904-1912) as the most senior captain at White Star Line.
Nickname: The Millionaire's Captain
People preferred to book cruises on his ships because he catered to their comforts and was an enjoyable dinner companion.
Salary: up to his death on April 15, 1912, he received double the salary of all other White Star Line Captains - £105 per month with a guaranteed annual of £1250.
£1250 converts to $1,637 in US Dollars which is
worth $42,398 today in 2018.
Parents:
Catherine married for the first time on June 13, 1831 to John Joseph Hancock and had two children, Joseph and Thirza. The couple divorced in 1839 and Catherine took custody of the two children. Her ex-husband John Joseph Hancock died in 1848.
On August 2, 1841, Catherine married Edward Smith Sr. when she was 33 and Edward was 37. She gave birth to the future Captain Edward Smith when she was 42 years old. Edward Smith Sr. died in 1864.
Siblings:
- Half-sister - Thirza Hancock Harrington (1836-1921)
- January 13, 1887. Edward married Sarah Eleanor Pennington (1861-1931). She was hit by a taxi and killed on May 1, 1931.
Marriage and Children:
- January 13, 1887. Edward married Sarah Eleanor Pennington (1861-1931). She was hit by a taxi and killed on May 1, 1931.
- One daughter, Helen Melville "Mel" Smith, born April 2, 1898. She died August 18, 1973 at the age of 75. She married twice.
Employment and Career
- May 26, 1875. Captain Smith received his Master's Certificate, age 25 (Title: Master Mariner)
- 1876. Took command of The Lucy Fennel
- 1880. Joined White Star Line as Junior Officer
- 1880. Became Fourth Officer of the SS Celtic in March.
- 1887. Received his first White Star Line command as Captain of the SS Republic, not to be confused with the RMS Republic built in 1903. His first command ended auspiciously and looking back at his history, that may have set the pace for his future commands. In early 1889, the SS Republic was being sold to Holland America. On January 27, 1889 on its final voyage under the White Star Line flag with Captain Smith in command, the ship was grounded shortly before arriving in New York because of an accident in the boiler area that killed three trimmers and injured several others. The ship underwent repairs and was sold per the agreement.
- 1888. Joined the Royal Naval Reserve (R.N.R.)
- 1888. Received his Extra Master's Certificate which brought him to the rank of full lieutenant in the Royal Navy Reserve and the right to have R.N.R. after his name.
- 1895. Took command of the SS Majestic for the next 9 years. Majestic was briefly put into service as a troop transport ship to Cape Colony, South Africa.
- 1903. King Edward VII awarded him the Transport Medal, the South Africa clasp was for his service as a "safe captain."
- From 1904 onward. Smith was assigned to command all of the new White Star Line ships on their maiden voyages.
- 1904. Given command of the SS Baltic. Maiden voyage June 29, 1904
- 1907. Given command of the SS Adriatic
- 1908. Received the Decoration for Officers of the Royal Naval Reserve and a promotion to Commander.
- 1911 June. Took command of the RMS Olympic on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. There was an incident that Smith insisted should not to go on his record because he claimed that he was not at fault.
- November 29, 1911. Olympic returned to service. Waiting weeks for the parts to be ordered and delivered would cost too much time out of service. So the needed parts were cannibalized from RMS Titanic which was in the last stages of completion. This changed the date of Titanic's maiden voyage to March 20, 1912.
- January 1912. Captain Smith is still in command of the RMS Olympic. Meanwhile at Harland and Wolff shipyard, Titanic was fitted with 16 wooden lifeboats (2 of which were ice cutters) and 4 collapsible boats for a total of 20. There were accommodations on the ship to store another 16 lifeboats but they were not brought aboard. White Star Line preferred to yield the space for passengers use.
- March 23, 1912. The call went out in Belfast and Southampton that Titanic was signing on experienced crew members and was especially in need of AB Seamen (Able-Bodied Seamen). A skeleton crew was sent to Belfast Ireland as they were scheduled for Titanic's sea trials during the week before sailing date.
- March 30, 1912. Titanic's fitting out was completed. Sea Trials were scheduled for April 1, 1912.
- 1920. Married Captain John Gilbertson, British Merchant Navy, Commander of the Morazan (the Bibby Line). He died in India in January 1922 of Blackwater Fever and was buried at sea.
- January 1923. Helen married Sidney Russell-Cooke. He died on July 3, 1930 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at age 33. They had two children (fraternal twins born June 18, 1923.
- Twin - Simon Russell Cooke (1923-1944) killed on March 24, 1944 while serving in Royal Air Force in WWII as a Volunteer Reserve Pilot, age 21
- Twin - Priscilla Russell-Cooke Phipps (1923-1947)
In 1946, Priscilla married John Constantine Phipps - no children
- Priscilla died of polio on October 7, 1947 at age 24
Education:
- Attended Etruria British School until age 12.
- Left school to work for 9 years at Etruria Forge as a steam hammer operator
- 1867 – Enlisted in the Mercantile Marines, studied for first Master’s Certificate. Began sea captain apprenticeship at Messrs. Andrew Gibson & Company (Liverpool)
- 1871 – Awarded certificate as Second Mate.
Employment and Career
- May 26, 1875. Captain Smith received his Master's Certificate, age 25 (Title: Master Mariner)
- 1876. Took command of The Lucy Fennel
- 1880. Joined White Star Line as Junior Officer
- 1880. Became Fourth Officer of the SS Celtic in March.
- 1887. Received his first White Star Line command as Captain of the SS Republic, not to be confused with the RMS Republic built in 1903. His first command ended auspiciously and looking back at his history, that may have set the pace for his future commands. In early 1889, the SS Republic was being sold to Holland America. On January 27, 1889 on its final voyage under the White Star Line flag with Captain Smith in command, the ship was grounded shortly before arriving in New York because of an accident in the boiler area that killed three trimmers and injured several others. The ship underwent repairs and was sold per the agreement.
- 1888. Joined the Royal Naval Reserve (R.N.R.)
- 1888. Received his Extra Master's Certificate which brought him to the rank of full lieutenant in the Royal Navy Reserve and the right to have R.N.R. after his name.
- This meant any ship under his command could fly the distinguished Blue Ensign flag and in times of war, Captain Smith, his ship and crew could be put in service to the Royal Navy. Usually British merchant ships flew the Red Ensign.
- 1895. Took command of the SS Majestic for the next 9 years. Majestic was briefly put into service as a troop transport ship to Cape Colony, South Africa.
- 1903. King Edward VII awarded him the Transport Medal, the South Africa clasp was for his service as a "safe captain."
- From 1904 onward. Smith was assigned to command all of the new White Star Line ships on their maiden voyages.
- 1904. Given command of the SS Baltic. Maiden voyage June 29, 1904
- 1907. Given command of the SS Adriatic
- 1908. Received the Decoration for Officers of the Royal Naval Reserve and a promotion to Commander.
- 1911 June. Took command of the RMS Olympic on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. There was an incident that Smith insisted should not to go on his record because he claimed that he was not at fault.
- Incident: June 21, 1911. At the end of RMS Olympic's maiden voyage, an incident occurred while docking at Pier 59 in New York. Captain Smith was assisted by a harbor pilot and 12 tugs to guide Olympic into the dock area. One of the tugs got caught in the backwash of the Olympic, spun around, collided with a bigger ship which, for a short time, was trapped under the stern of the Olympic. It took awhile for the tug to work them free, sustaining significant damage to the tug but not to the Olympic. Captain Smith did not consider this an incident against him. He said because there was minimal damage to the Olympic that his record should remain accident-free so he could still qualify to collect the annual bonus for having a clean record. The Line agreed, but it didn't stay clean for long.
- Incident: September 20, 1911. Still serving as Captain of the RMS Olympic, the ship sustained serious damage after a major collision with Royal Navy warship, HMS Hawke. Smith refused to take blame for the collision. He insisted that he was not in command of Olympic at the time of impact because the harbormaster came aboard and was given the command to guide them through the Solent which was between 2 and 5 miles wide and about 20 miles long. The Royal Navy sued White Star Line and it came out at trial that Captain Smith was always in command of his ship and was present on the bridge during the collision. The Olympic had considerable damage and was out of service for nearly two months. The HMS Hawke lost her bow and was out of service for several months. Smith's major concern was that the collision shouldn't be on his record to jeopardize his annual bonus. The result of the trial was that Smith was found at fault and White Star had to pay for the repair of both ships. Smith had to forfeit his bonus for 1911.
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| Damage to the Olympic |
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| Damage to the Hawke |
- January 1912. Captain Smith is still in command of the RMS Olympic. Meanwhile at Harland and Wolff shipyard, Titanic was fitted with 16 wooden lifeboats (2 of which were ice cutters) and 4 collapsible boats for a total of 20. There were accommodations on the ship to store another 16 lifeboats but they were not brought aboard. White Star Line preferred to yield the space for passengers use.
-Incident: February 24, 1912. While under Captain Smith's command, the Olympic struck an underwater obstruction near Georges Banks, causing the Olympic to run aground. She lost a propeller blade and had to return to Harland and Wolff for repairs. The needed parts were again taken from Titanic to keep the Olympic from being out of service too long. Titanic's maiden voyage was moved from March 20, 1912 to April 10, 1912.
- March 23, 1912. The call went out in Belfast and Southampton that Titanic was signing on experienced crew members and was especially in need of AB Seamen (Able-Bodied Seamen). A skeleton crew was sent to Belfast Ireland as they were scheduled for Titanic's sea trials during the week before sailing date.
- March 30, 1912. Titanic's fitting out was completed. Sea Trials were scheduled for April 1, 1912.
- March 30, 1912. Despite several incidents at sea, Captain Smith was appointed to command the RMS Titanic. Rumors began to circulate that this would be his last command before his retirement. However, there was one newspaper article published the day before sailing that claimed he would remain in charge of Titanic until White Star Line completed their next steamer. The rumor would take center stage during crew testimony at the inquest.
- April 1, 1912. Titanic's Sea Trials were postponed for 24 hours due to bad weather.
- Incident: April 1, 1912 - A fire broke out in one of Titanic's coal bins. The engineer said if they took the time to extinguish it and clear the air, it would delay Titanic's departure. Instead, they were told to keep an eye on it, and they tried to extinguish some of it each day. Late on April 15, 1912 hours after the sinking, White Star Line tried to blame the fire as a cause of Titanic's problems at sea because the fire, which had been burning for ten days, was not totally extinguished until the third night of Titanic's voyage, April 13, 1912. The inquest put that argument to rest.
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| Stokers were called "the black gang" |
Every stoker who was interviewed when they arrived in New York declared that the Titanic had been on fire from the time she left Southampton until late Saturday evening. Crew members testified they were warned by a ship's officer not to talk about the fire but several crew members spoke to reporters under protection of anonymity. The stokers said the fire was in the coal bunkers in stoke holes #9 and #10 on the forward end. Several stokers said the fire was raging hours before she pulled out of Southampton while others said it was not discovered until they were one hour past the Needles. Even though the stokers worked on the fire every day, it still took until Saturday April 14th to extinguish it.
- 6am, April 2, 1912. Titanic's sea trials were conducted for 12 hours in Belfast Lough, then in the Irish Sea. On board were Captain Smith; 41 members of the crew including galley and bakers, but no domestic staff; 78 stokers and firemen; Thomas Andrews (the ship's designer from Harland and Wolff); Edward Wildling (from Harland and Wolff); Harold Sanderson (a representative of J P Morgan of International Maritime Marine Company who owned part of White Star Line); wireless operators Jack Phillips and Harold Bride; and Francis Carruthers (a surveyor from the Board of Trade). J Bruce Ismay and Lord Pirrie were not able to attend. Titanic was tested at different speeds, stopping, turning, and a crash stop where the engines were reversed from full ahead to full astern to test the stopping times. Titanic passed her trials and was awarded a Seaworthy Certificate, valid for 12 months.
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| Titanic sea trials at Southampton |
- 1 AM, April 4, 1912. After sea trials, Titanic sailed 28 hours from Belfast to Southampton, then was towed to Berth 44 to wait six days for sailing day. The deep water dock at Southampton had been specially built in 1911 by White Star to accommodate their newest ships.
- April 6, 1912. Most of the crew had been signed on to RMS Titanic but since there were still a few vacancies, the call went out again.
- April 9, 1912. The day before sailing. Last minute crew members were signed on to Titanic. They were permitted to board the night before sailing to acquaint themselves with the ship, but not everyone took advantage of the opportunity.
- 7am, April 10, 1912. Captain Smith arrived on Titanic one hour prior to the Board of Trade muster which was scheduled for 8am. He reviewed the sailing report he received from his First Officer William Murdoch. A change in officers caused a change in everyone's duties. Henry Tingle Wilde was transferred from the RMS Olympic to Titanic as Chief Mate. The previous Chief Mate William McMaster Murdock was bumped down to First Officer. First Officer Charles Lightoller was bumped down to Second Officer. David Blair, the original Second Officer was replaced by Herbert Pitman who was the only officer who wasn't in the Royal Naval Reserve. Total crew members: approximately 885.
- 9:30am, Wednesday, April 10, 1912. Passengers began boarding at Southampton until 11am. Departure was set for Noon.
Total passengers boarding at Southampton - 920.
First Class = 179.
Second Class = 247.
Third Class = 494.
- 12Noon. Wednesday, April 10, 1912. Departure from Southampton dock before heading to Cherbourg France was almost another blemish on Captain Smith's record.
Incident: As Titanic was leaving Southampton, two docked ocean liners - the RMS Oceanic and the SS New York - were overcome by a large bulge of water caused by Titanic which lifted them up and dropped them down hard in a trough. The mooring cables of the SS New York snapped it free, swung it around so it was faced with the huge Titanic straight ahead. The amount and force of the water caused such a suction effect that the much smaller SS New York could have been sucked underneath Titanic, something Captain Smith was very familiar with from previous incidents. The Vulcan tug towed the SS New York away in the opposite direction. It was very close; the two ships came to within four (4) feet of each another.
- 1pm, Wednesday, April 10, 1912 - Titanic's departure from Southampton was delayed one hour while the SS New York was towed out of the way. Five tugboats then navigated Titanic to Nab Lightship, then toward the English Channel. Titanic traveled the 89 miles to Cherbourg, France, a voyage that should have taken about four hours but the weather was windy so Titanic didn't push the speed.
- 6:35pm, Wednesday, April 10, 1912 - Titanic arrived at Cherbourg, France. Because the port didn't have docking facilities for a ship as large as Titanic, White Star Line transferred passengers on two tenders - the SS Traffic (for Third Class passengers) and the SS Nomadic (for First and Second Class passengers).
Total passengers boarding at Cherbourg: 274.
First Class = 142.
Second Class = 30.
Third Class = 102.
24 passengers who booked a cross-Channel trip
left Titanic at Cherbourg.
Titanic picked up more supplies: 15,000 bottles of beer, 10,000 bottles of wine, 12,000 bottles of mineral water, 75,000 pounds of meat, and dozens of cases of champagne.
- 8 pm, Wednesday, April 10, 1912 - Titanic left Cherbourg, France to its next port, Queenstown, Ireland. They were due to arrive the next morning.
- 11:30am, Thursday, April 11, 1912 - Titanic arrived at Cork Harbor, Ireland. Tenders were again used to transfer passengers from dock to ship.
Total passengers - 123.
First Class = 3.
Second Class = 7.
Third Class = 113.
7 passengers left at Queenstown.
Incident - Crew member John Coffey, a stoker and Queenstown resident, abandoned his job on Titanic without notice. He hid under mail bags that were taken to shore, but this was not known right away. After Titanic sunk, his name was still on the crew list and he was counted among the dead until he told newspaper reporters that he had jumped ship in Queenstown.
- 1:30pm, Thursday, April 11, 1912 - Titanic left Queenstown, Ireland with her course set to arrive in New York City on the morning of April 17, 1912.
The fire below deck continued to burn and wasn't totally extinguished until April 14.
More of Titanic's adventures are continued on separate posts.
- 1912. Captain Smith's annual salary with the White Star Line was guaranteed at £1,250 (British Pounds). His monthly salary was £105. He was also awarded an extra bonus of £200 per year if his ships didn't have any accidents during the calendar year.
Conversion link - changes British pounds to US dollars for present day value, not 1912. One British Pound converts to $1.11 today.
- 1912. Captain Smith's annual salary with the White Star Line was guaranteed at £1,250 (British Pounds). His monthly salary was £105. He was also awarded an extra bonus of £200 per year if his ships didn't have any accidents during the calendar year.
After Captain Smith died, his wife was paid the salary that was owed to her husband, but because Titanic sank, she didn't get the $200 bonus.
See separate posts for crew salaries.
Conversion link - changes British pounds to US dollars for present day value, not 1912. One British Pound converts to $1.11 today.
£105 per month in 1912 converts to $11,708 today in 2018 using this Conversion link. His annual salary of £1250 comes to $139,394.13.
He was a fairly wealthy man.
When viewing crew salaries, use the first link to convert pounds to dollars, then use the second link for US dollars set at 1912 to this current year so you can get an idea of the value of their money.
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