Introduction
Most of those aboard the Titanic were to lose their lives when she went down, but some were lucky. Controversy continues to this day, however; if you were travelling in first class you were likely to live, whilst if you were a third class passenger it was likely you would perish. Read on for key facts and figures about the survivors of the disaster.
31.6% – the percentage of people aboard (passengers and crew) who survived the sinking.
53.4% – the total percentage who could have survived, given the number of spaces available on the lifeboats.
Survivors of the Titanic – Passengers
492 – the number of Titanic passengers who survived.
37% – the percentage of passengers who survived.
61% – the percentage of First Class passengers who survived.
42% – the percentage of Standard Class passengers who survived .
24% – the percentage of Third Class passengers who survived.
Above: British Pathé News footage of the Titanic, including interviews with survivors.
2 – the number of dogs believed to have survived (both were lapdogs taken onto lifeboats by their owners).
20% – the percentage of male passengers who survived.
75% – the percentage of female passengers who survived.
Titanic Survivors by Class
Survivors of the Titanic – Crew
214 – the number of Titanic crew members who survived.
24% – the percentage of crew members who survived.
22% – the percentage of male crew members who survived.
87% – the percentage of female crew members who survived.
50% – the percentage of Navigation Officers who survived (4 out of 8).
0% – the percentage of Engineering Officers who survived (all 25 perished, bravely working to keep the ship afloat for as long as possible).
100% – the percentage of lookouts who survived.
Oldest and Youngest Survivors by Class
First Class
13 years, 5 months, 26 days – the age of the youngest female survivor from first class, Miss Lucile Polk Carter.
11 months, 8 days – the age of the youngest male survivor from first class, Master Hudson Trevor Allison.
64 years, 8 months, 8 days – the age of the oldest female survivor from first class, Mrs Mary Eliza Compton (also the oldest survivor overall).
60 years, 6 months, 21 days – the age of the oldest male survivor from first class, Mr Maximilian Josef Frölicher-Stehli.
Second Class
10 months, 22 days – the age of the youngest female survivor from second class, Miss Barbara Joyce West.
7 months, 17 days – the age of the youngest male survivor from second class, Master Viljo Unto Johannes Hämäläinen.
59 years, 8 months, 30 days – the age of the oldest female survivor from second class, Mrs Lutie Davis Parrish.
62 years, 1 month – the age (approximate, exact date of birth not known) of the oldest male survivor from second class, Mr George Harris.
Third Class
2 months, 13 days – the age of the youngest survivor from third class, Miss Elizabeth Gladys “Millvina” Dean (also the youngest survivor overall).
5 months, 7 days – the age of the youngest male survivor from third class, Master As’ad Tannūs.
63 years, 10 months, 9 days – the age of the oldest female survivor from third class, Mrs Hedwig Turkula.
45 years, 8 months, 24 days – the age of the oldest male survivor from third class, Mr Charles Edward Dahl.
Note: There were 109 children on the Titanic, of whom just 56 survived. Of the fatalities, there was a single child victim in first class, none in second class, whilst in third class 52 children lost their lives.
Which ship rescued the Titanic survivors?
Those lucky to survive the sinking and the freezing water were eventually picked up by the Carpathia. Controversially, the SS Californian was closer to Titanic when she went down, but failed to respond to her distress signals.
Titanic Relief Fund
£413,000 – approximate amount raised for the survivors by the official Titanic Relief Fund.
£21,000,000 – approximate equivalent value of the fund in today’s terms.
£10,500 – the amount donated by the Shipping Federation.
500 guineas – the amount donated by King George V.
250 guineas – the amount donated by Queen Mary.
£200 – the amount donated by Queen Alexandra.
2,396 – the number of dependants who made claims on the Fund.
1,400 – the approximate number of claimants who came from the Southampton area.
50% – the approximate amount of a crew member’s pay that was given to their family as a relief payment.
1959 – the year the Titanic Relief Fund was wound up (the balance was transferred into annuities or to the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners’ Royal Benevolent Society).
$5,000 – the approximate amount collected by members of the New York Stock Exchange, and taken to pier 54, where it was distributed, in small bills, to third class survivors.
100 – the number of survivors that New York hotelier Mr D H Knott said he was willing to accommodate at three of his hotels, in an offer of help made to the New York Mayor’s office.
Where were the survivors of the Titanic taken?
After collecting as many survivors as could be found, the rescue ship Carpathia travelled directly on to New York, arriving at Pier 54 three days later.
Other Facts On The Survivors Of The Titanic
9 – the number of days spent in the search for survivors.
242154 – the ticket number of an anonymous passenger who received a full refund prior to departure and is assumed not to have sailed.
3 – the number of sinkings that a man named Frank Lucks Tower is said to have survived, having served on the Titanic (1912), the Empress of Ireland (1914), and the Lusitania (1915). However, this is just urban legend; no crew lists for the three unlucky vessels list his name.
2 – the number of women from Lack in County Mayo, Ireland who had tickets booked for Titanic but did not sail. Annie Jordan cancelled her trip due to a facial rash, whilst Norah Callaghan sailed the next day, aboard another White Star Line ship, the RMS Celtic.
Above: Titanic survivors ashore at Millbay Docks, Plymouth, England, May 1912.
$664,000 – the final settlement for all outstanding legal claims, paid by White Star Line in December 1915.
$2,500,000 – an estimate of the possible total value of claims, according to the Claimants Committee.
26% – the percentage of the Claimant Committee’s estimate that the final settlement represented.
$500,000 – the amount of the £664,000 distributed to American claimants.
$50,000 – the amount of the £664,000 distributed to British claimants.
$114,000 – the amount of the £664,000 that was used to pay interest and legal expenses arising from the law suits.
Are any Titanic survivors still alive today?
No. The last living survivor died on 31 May 2009. Elizabeth Gladys ‘Millvina’ Dean, who sailed with her parents as a third-class passenger, was just 8 weeks old when Titanic sailed. Shed died, aged 97, at a nursing home in Hampshire, England. Millvina Dean had become the last living survivor on 16 October 2007, when Barbara West Dainton died, aged 96.
15 April 1995 – the date on which two survivors, Edith Eileen Haisman (nee Brown) – aged 98 – and Eva Hart – 90 – attended the opening of the Memorial Garden at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, England.
15 April 2002 – the date on which Milvina Dean, then one of just 4 survivors of the sinking of the Titanic still living, unveiled a plaque in Canute Road, Southampton, to mark the 90th anniversary of the sinking.
9 weeks – Milvina Dean’s age at the time of the disaster.
31 May 2009 – the date on which Milvina Dean, the last living survivor, died, aged 97.
More To Explore
If you have enjoyed reading these facts about the Titanic survivors why not view the complete list of survivors, find out about the unfortunate casualties of the sinking, or read some famous and less well-known quotes from the Titanic.