Tag Archives: New Jersey

Titanic Baker Buried in New Jersey

RMS Titanic pictured in Queenstown, Ireland 11 April 1912
Source:Cobh Heritage Centre, Cobh Ireland/Wikimedia Commons

An interesting piece from Only In Your State about Charles Joughin, Joughin was a baker on Titanic and in fact had retired for the night when the ship hit the iceberg. He helped people into lifeboats and likely was on the last persons to leave the ship when the aft sank. He is famously remembered for drinking alcohol (a real no-no under Captain Smith) and tossing deck chairs into the water to use as flotation devices. He also made bread for the lifeboats as well. He survived the sinking and made it ultimately to the turned over collapsible lifeboat that Lightoller and others were on. It already had 20-25 people already on it and had to stay in the water until another lifeboat showed up and he was able to board that. He would recuperate in New York, testified at the British Inquiry, and continue with his life. He would be aboard another ship, the SS Congress, that would also sink as well. The ship caught fire and the quick thinking captain beached the vessel (no one died). Joughin would settle in New Jersey and remain there for the remainder of his life. He passed away on 9 December 1956 and is buried next to his wife Nellie in the Cedar Lawn Cemetery.

He was depicted in A Night to Remember and James Cameron’s Titanic.

Source:

The Last Survivor To Leave The Sinking Titanic Is Buried In A Rural New Jersey Graveyard (OnlyInYourState.com, 24 Dec 2021)

Additional Information:

Encyclopedia Titanica (2019): Charles John Joughin (ref: #1945, last updated: 17th October 2019, accessed 27th December 2021 08:15:41 AM)

 


Headstone For Titanic Hero

Collapsible lifeboat D photographed by passenger on Carpathia on the morning of 15 April 1912. Public Domain(Wikipedia)
Collapsible lifeboat D photographed by passenger on Carpathia on the morning of 15 April 1912.
Public Domain(Wikipedia)

Robert J. Hopkins was an able seaman on Titanic on that fateful night. He was assigned to lifeboat 13 with Fred Barrett. As the lifeboat reached the water, both he and Barrett had to quickly free it as lifeboat 15 was coming down nearly on top of them. Fortunately a knife was found and the ropes were cut allowing the lifeboat to drift away. After he arrived in New York, he sought assistance from the American Red Cross. There were some statements that were inaccurately attributed to him about possible bribery by Duff Gordon who was in lifeboat 1.

Hopkins was from Belfast and immigrated with his wife to the United States in 1900. They had two sons while living in New York but sadly his wife passed away in 1907. His brought his sons to Liverpool to be raised by the family. At the time he served on Titanic, he was living in Hoboken in New Jersey. He would live the rest of his life there and passed away on 17 November 1943. He was buried in Holy Name Cemetery but it never had a headstone till now. Thanks to the Archdiocese of Newark,Titanic International Society and his descendants,a headstone has been put in place. It will be dedicated on 14 May 2016 and blessed by Bishop John W. Flesey.

[Correction#1: NJ.com originally reported that the dedication/blessing was done last week. In fact it is not scheduled till 14 May 2016. The entry has been updated to reflect this information.]

Sources:
Titanic hero’s grave in Jersey City to finally get headstone (3 May 2016,nj.com)
Titanic Lifeboat No. 13 (Encyclopedia Titanica)
Robert John Hopkins (Encyclopedia Titanica)

If You Have $10.9 Million This Former Straus Property Could Be Yours

In Red Bank, New Jersey the children of Isidor and Ida Straus decided to build a huge estate called Cobble Close in the 1920’s. It was modeled on 18th century Provence and no expense was spared to get the best of everything. Anything that could not be imported was built to on site by French and Italian artisans who immigrated to America for the job. The huge expanse of space-29,000 feet–allowed them to plan a majestic 35-bedroom chateau (not built), orangery, a barn and a caretaker’s cottage. The Great Depression slowed and ended the construction. The Straus family sold it in 1951. The estate buildings were turned into homes and a co-op was created so that the building owners could share use of the pool and other things.

Now it is up for sale, the entire estate. The buildings look really good as do the interiors. The area itself is quite wealthy and rated a nice area to live in. With 29,000 feet, you can certainly find a place to escape from the cares of the world. Just fork over $10.9 million and it is all yours.

Source:Macy’s Family Built This Frozen-In-Time Compound Between Titanic Disaster And Depression(6 Oct 2014,Zillow Blog)


Titanic Cliche: This Ship Is About to Sink!

Titanic has become so common in political/economic conversation these days it now called “T-word.” Kevin Riordan at the Philadelphia Inquirer coined the phrase in a recent column. In reporting his interview with Ken Hartman he writes: “About five minutes into our chat about public school funding, Ken Hartman goes for the T-word.” Not just once but three times in the interview:

1. “They said the Titanic would never sink. That was arrogant – and it’s also arrogant for New Jersey to think we can continue to spend money we don’t have,” says Hartman, still making waves in his final weeks as a Cherry Hill school board member.”

2. “The captain of the Titanic knew he had a gaping hole beneath the water line,” continues Hartman, a telegenic, 51-year-old father of two. “But the reaction was, ‘Strike up the band.’ I’m saying, ‘Guys, we’ve got a hole in the ship.’ “

3. “The water is up to the promenade deck,” says Hartman, who describes himself as a “constitutionalist conservative” and blames both Republicans and Democrats for the “mess” in Trenton. “The ship is sinking.”

Wow. Most commentators just limit comparing to reshuffling deck chairs on Titanic. He cannot resist using Titanic three times to get his point across. Well done Mr. Hartman. Not many can do that. For that we award you the coveted Titanic Cliche of Day Award.

Source:
philly.com,  The Ship Of State Is About To Sink, By This Reckoning, 30 Mar 2010