Comments on: Setting Sail Into The Unknown

By: Gladys

Gladys — Sun, 27 May 2012 02:06:14 +0000

I wondering about The Salvation Army went down on the ship???

By: Sonya Johnson

Sonya Johnson — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 15:33:12 +0000

I have been on Ancestory .com since last Feb I find the history enriching and have found out so much about my ancestors it has been a emotional journey for me. Now that I find out searching passenger records of the Titanic that I may of had 2 ancestors Thomas Myles and Frank Miles on the Titanic I have to research it further to be for sure .I was separated from my family when I was 2 and my father passed before I was born so I never had the privilege of knowing any of my family growing up so by researching my family I have a better understanding of who I am and where my family on both sides came from .I have a deep appreciation for what my ancestors endured in there time to make a better life for generations to come.

By: Alice Luckhardt

Alice Luckhardt — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 12:05:39 +0000

No matter what historical event it does involve people and everyone has story – we can all learn from history and a person’s story. Read the April issue of ‘History Magazine’ by Moorshead Publisher with two feature articles with personal stories surrounding the Titanic.

By: RWE1953

RWE1953 — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:42:33 +0000

I have a unique connection to the Titanic, my grandfather was supposed to be on board but was late getting to the ship from Sweden. He was traveling alone at 16 to meet an older sister already in Massachusetts. To him it was a chance at a new life, there was poverty and much disease at home, illness had already taken his five other siblings and his father. I’m sure it was similar for a lot of the 2nd and 3rd class passengers. Unfortunately, he never talked about family or his journey, I wish now that I had had the courage to ask him some questions.

By: dannieb

dannieb — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:09:11 +0000

John, really? The Titanic is something that almost everyone has heard of. As a public (money-making) site, it behooves ancestry.com to take notice of the anniversary.

For those of us whose ancestors came earlier, the story of the Titanic is interesting, in part because the voyage had, supposedly, become more commonplace. For the modern-day researcher, any ocean voyage may be fascinating – “what do you mean you could not arrive by plane in a few hours?”

By: Colleen

Colleen — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:43:30 +0000

Well said Crista. I couldn’t agree more. I in fact did find a voyage similar to the Titanic in my own family history. It was 60+ years before the Titanic sailed but met with a similar fate. My ancestors were some of the fortunate ones who survived for hours stranded on an iceberg hoping for rescue. Many of their fellow passengers were not as lucky.

I’m glad I’m not alone in my fascination with not just the facts — names, dates and locations — but the circumstances and times in which they lived. I spend so much time reading about those aspects that I’m not sure I’ll ever finish my tree. What do they say — it’s not the destination but the journey that counts? That’s certainly true for me.

By: Pat Secord

Pat Secord — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:19:48 +0000

#5 Sandra – I agree with you, Sandra. I was never interested in history either. But I look at history in an entirely different light now. Even if my ancestors weren’t directly involved in historic events, just seeing how people lived during a time period helps to understand how our ancestors lived. As for the Titanic collection, what a great way to honor those who perished.

By: Sandra

Sandra — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 23:34:04 +0000

This reply is to John. Any historical information is valuable. I never really appreciated history before joining Ancestry, but knowing that my grandfather changed his last name before joining the army in WWI was always a family mystery…after researching the history if Cincinnati and learning of the anti-German attitudes helped give me insight in to why he would have done such a thing. For me the details on Ancestry provide a springboard from which to jump and lead me to do on site research. Otherwise it would be just a lot of dates with dashes between. I want to find out more than when they were born and when they died…what’s between the dash is the story.

By: Crista Cowan

Crista Cowan — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 23:21:43 +0000

Donna, It is my understanding that you could only book passage on the Titanic a few months before the sailing. If I come across the source for that I will let you know.

By: Donna

Donna — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 22:44:28 +0000

My husbands father (born 4/19/1912 in Finland) told us that his parents and 2 siblings had booked passage on the Titanic, but because of his birth, they missed the boat. I am trying understand why they would have booked passage with the impending birth so close to the sailing date of the Titanic. Could it be possible that they would have purchased their tickets a year or more before the sailing date? and is there any way to verify their claim? They did sail on the S/S Mauretania, arrived New York on Aug 10, 1912. Port of Departure from Liverpool.

Any help will be appreciated.