Archie Jewell

Archibald "Archie" Jewell (born December 4, 1888 in Bude , Cornwall , England , † April 17, 1917 in the English Channel ) was a member of the crew of the Titanic .

Life

Archibald Jewell - called Archie - was reportedly the youngest child of John Jewell, a sailor and his wife Elizabeth Jewell. He had six older siblings, two sisters and four brothers. However, his mother died soon after his birth, on April 9, 1891.

In 1903, at the age of 15, Jewell began working on smaller sailing ships before joining the White Star Line in 1904. Jewell served as an able seaman on the Oceanic for almost eight years, during which time he lived in Southampton . He also married at a young age and moved with his wife, Bessie (born Heard), according Bitterne ( Hampshire ).

On April 6, 1912 it was clear that he would be transferred to the Titanic as one of six lookouts . With the 24-year-old George Symonds, Jewell stood watch in the crow's nest between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. and from 2:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m. , also on the night of April 15, 1912.

At 10:00 pm the two men were replaced by their colleagues Reginald Lee and Frederick Fleet ; Jewell was therefore in his cabin when the collision with the iceberg occurred at 23:40 . At 12:45 a.m., Jewell was among the first to escape sinking in Lifeboat 7.

After arriving in New York City on the RMS Carpathia , Jewell returned to England on April 29, 1912 on board the Lapland . He was one of the first witnesses questioned by Lord Justice Mersey on May 3, 1912, before the British Commission of Inquiry into the accident. No fewer than 331 questions were asked of Jewell.

A short time later, the First World War broke out in Europe . Jewell signed on to the Britannic , the Titanic's sister ship . Their downfall on November 21, 1916, Jewell survived, as did Violet Jessop, former stewardess, and John Priest, former stoker of the Titanic .

Bessie Jewell gave birth to Archie's son, Raymond Hope Jewell, in the fall of 1916. Jewell then resigned from White Star and signed on to HMHS Donegal . The Donegal , a passenger ship that had entered service in 1904, was converted into a hospital ship to transport wounded soldiers from France to England. On one of these voyages on March 1, 1917, the enemy came into contact with a German submarine. Badly damaged, the Donegal managed to get to safety, but it was never repaired. This was her undoing on April 17, 1917, when another German submarine attacked the Donegal without warning . When the ship went down, 19 nautical miles south of Dean , 12 crew members and 29 British soldiers were killed. Archie Jewell was among the 11 men who were on the crew; he was only 28 years old. His body was never recovered.

A plaque commemorates Jewell in the Tower Hill Memorial in Trinity Square ( London ); also at the grave of his son in Burlescombe ( Devon ), who died on December 10, 1930 at the age of 14 after a serious illness in Exeter . Archie Jewell was survived not only by each of his siblings and wife, but also by his father, who died on January 19, 1936.

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• Entry in the Encyclopedia Titanica