Titanic’s last lifeboat: Contained three rotting bodies – including a man still in his dinner jacket – was found 200 miles by passing liner a month later a …

 

Collapsible Boat B, found adrift by the ship Mackay-Bennett during its mission to recover the bodies of those who died in the disaster. source

Reported in the newspapers as the ‘unsinkable’, the Titanic perished on April 15, 1912 leaving a trail of death and destruction. The unfortunate disaster took place in the middle of North Atlantic Ocean some 400 miles south of Newfoundland, Canada.
When the wreckage of the doomed ship was first discovered in 1985, a new research commenced into the disaster opening new avenues, uncovering more details about the disaster. James Cameron’s blockbuster with a number of academy and Oscars brought the Titanic into the pop culture, and ever since it has become an integral part of new age.

Recently the pictures of perhaps the last life boat that left the sinking liner surfaced on web shedding the light on some of the last victims of the disaster. The boat was first discovered a month after the Titanic sank, by the crew of RMS Oceanic. On May 13, 1912 crew on board Oceanic spotted a floating piece of wood far off in the distance, some 200 miles away from the site where Titanic sank.

Partially flooded with ice-cold seawater, the Titanic’s Collapsible Boat D approaches RMS Carpathia at 7:15 a. on 15 April 1912. source

After getting to the lifeboat, the crew discovered the bodies of two firemen who worked in Titanic’s engine room and a first class passenger still dressed in his dinner attire, identified later as Thomson Beattie. In the bottom compartment of the boat the crew found a wedding band with engravings of the names ‘Edvard to Gerda’. The detailed account of the discovery and pictures of the recovery mission of the lifeboat named ‘Collapsible A’ helped the researchers to identify the bodies and tell their stories in great detail.

Titanic’s wooden lifeboats in New York Harbor following the disaster. This particular image has been doctored to add the words “R.M.S. Titanic”. In fact the lifeboats bore the name “S.S. Titanic”on a plaque mounted at the other end of the boat. source

Edvard and Gerda Lindel

The story of the couple Edvard and Gerda Lindel is perhaps one of the most heart breaking that can put Titanic movie’s plot to shame. Edvard a labourer wanted to take his wife Gerda to a better place in hope of prosperous future, in the US. They left Sweden and came to Southampton and booked a third class ticked on Titanic paying some £15 11s. When the iceberg hit the cruise liner Lindels tried to climb up to the safety but could not reach the top. Gerda fell from the deck after holding her husband’s hand for as long as they both could, Edvard died shortly afterwards. Their wedding ring with inscription ‘Edvard to Gerda’ was later discovered on one of the life boats and was given to Gerda’s family.

Thomson Beattie

A wealthy bachelor from Canada, Mr. Beattie made the journey from Canada to France in search of milder climate escaping the freezing Canadian winters. His plan was to stay in France for a little longer but due to one of his companion falling ill; he had to make the last minute reservations on Titanic back to North America. Mr. Beattie wrote a letter to his mother informing her of his early departure from Europe citing that he was on his way back home on an ‘unsinkable boat’. Thomson Beattie paid a handsome amount of money to get the cabin among some of the wealthiest people on board Titanic. After Titanic crashed into the iceberg, Beattie was among the very first people leaving in a life boat to safety. However he died due to exposure along with two firemen a couple of hundred miles away from the disaster site.