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Nathan Heddle
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 4:43 am: |       |
I was wonderng wether anybody knew much about Milton Long. I've only seen his name in passing. I know he was a couple of years older than Jack Thayer, that they became friends on the ship, and that Thayer was the last to see him alive when they jumped together.
I wondered who he was, who were his people and where he was from etc. |
Kritina Johnston
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 6:06 am: | |
There's an entry here on ET about him, which gives his place of birth and when he was born, etc.
There was also an article about him published in Volume 20 of the THS Commutator. The article was written about the dedication of a new headstone for his grave. The article contained a quote from the Springfield (Massachusetts) Daily Republican from Friday, April 19, 1912:
"Milton C. Long was born in this city October 19, 1882, the only son of Judge and Mrs. Charles L. Long, and after studying in local schools attended Harvard and Columbia law school. (There is a caption that states that THS contacted Harvard; Harvard had no information on Milton. Columbia stated that Milton was enrolled as a matriculated student of the university in the class of 1905, but did not graduate). For the last years he had traveled much, and he had just finished a trip around the world last Fall when in the wreck of the steamer Spokane in the inside passage to Alaska, he had a narrow escape. In the course of his exceptionally wide travels, Mr. Long had many odd experiences and had seen many unusual things.
Of these he told entertainingly and well giving evidence of an observant eye and a broadening horizon in regard to the interests and affairs of life. His account of the wreck of the Spokane was graphic. But more by the manner of his telling than by what he said, it was apparent that he had gone through the nerve-trying episode with a calmness which must have stood him in good stead in the last ordeal of the Titanic. He was a young man of delicate refinement and with the strength lent by increasing robustness he was handsome to an unusual degree."
I hope this gives you a good impression of who Milton was. If you or anybody else is interested, I could type a copy here of the letter Thayer wrote to Milton's parents. (I transcribed it from Davie's book, to give credit where credit is due). |
Nathan Heddle
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 7:23 am: | |
Thanks Kritina that was quite helpful, and I should have gone looking at the bios here first, really.
The letter that jack Thayer wrote to Long's parents would be great to read, if you don't mind typing it up.
Thanks
nathan |
Edmund Turner
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 10:02 am: | |
I would certainly be intrested to read the letter
Kritina if you wouldn't mind typing it up
ED |
Kritina Johnston
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 10:05 am: | |
Here's the letter, addressed to Judge Charles L. Long of Springfield, Mass., dated April 23, 1912.
"My dear Sir:
I received your letter this morning. Mother and I were very touched by it. Words cannot express how much we sympathize with you and Mrs. Long.
The newspaper clipping is accurate as far as it goes, but it does not give any of the details relating to my short friendship with your son. These I will try to tell you now, giving our own words as I can recall them.
I was sitting in the room outside the main dining saloon, waiting for the music to begin. I had dined alone and was sitting alone, my father and mother having been invited out to dine in the restaurant. There was a box of matches on the small table at which I was sitting. Your son was sitting in front and to one side of us, with his back toward me. He took out a cigarette and having no matches, came up to my table and asked if he might take a match. I said, "Yes." In a few minutes he came back for another one. I told him he mght take them back to his table if he wanted, as I didn't smoke. He looked lonely, sitting all alone, and I was lonely, so I pulled my chair up to his table and asked if I might join him. He smiled and said, "Yes, certainly." I started the conversation by telling him that I had just been in Switzerland, Holland, Germany, Austria, and England. He said he had just been in St. Moritz, and he told me all about the winter sports. He said that he had been skiing mostly, and that he did not go on the "Cresta" because he was your only son and you did not want him to run into any danger for nothing. He said that he expected to go back to England in a few months, to spend the summer and go to several house parties. We talked about cricket and baseball. He told me of his trip around the world and of getting shipwrecked in Alaska. He said he had only got his feet wet, as he jumped from boat to the shore. I asked him if he ever collected stamps, with his wonderful advantages for it while traveling. He said he did but had lost interest in it. I told him it was my hobby. We talked about stamps for a while. Then we talked over different things we had seen, and he connected with some dates. I expressed some surprise, thinking he was about twenty-one or twenty-two. He laughed and asked me to guess his age. So as not to be too far out either way I guessed twenty-six. Then he told me he was thirty, but had been masquerading in Switzerland as twenty-two. We kept on talking about different things, which I do not remember. We talked for about two hours and a half together. Then I saw mother and father come downstairs, so I said goodnight to your son. He asked me to come and sit with him or walk with him on deck the next morning. He then went to walk on deck before going to bed. I went to bed with mother and father.
The Titanic struck the iceberg at fourteen minutes to twelve. There was only a slight shock and bumping then all was still. It was about five minutes after twelve when I again saw your son. Father and mother and I were just going up the stairs, having dressed completely and tied on life preservers under our overcoats, when we met your son on A Deck. He had an overcoat over his dress suit, and a life preserver on under his overcoat. I think he had just been sitting in the smoking room or had come in from his walk on deck. He came up to me and said, "Do you mind if I stick with you?" I replied, "No; come ahead; keep with us." We all went up and walked around the boat deck for a while. Father and I said goodbye to mother at the top of the stairs on the boat deck, when they called all the women to the port side. Then your son and myself and father walked around to different boats, only to be directed to others. We then went to the port side. We met Dodd, the dining room steward. He took us to mother, as she had not yet gotten into a boat. We stayed with her for a few minutes when Mr. Wild {sic}, the Chief Officer, told us to go down onto A Deck and get into a boat that they were loading from there. Father and mother went ahead-your son and I followed. A crowd pushed ahead of us and we could not find my mother or father when we were able to pass on, so thinking they had managed to get off in a boat we went to the starboard side of the boat deck. There was an awful crowd around the last boat on the forward part of the starboard side, pushing and shoving wildly. We thought it best not to get in it, as we thought it would never reach the water right side up, but it did. We went and stood by the davits of a boat which had left. There was such a big list to port that it seemed as if she would turn over on her side as she sank. In such a case we would not have had the slightest chance, so I told him I was going to jump out and slide down the davit ropes into the water and try to swim to the boats in the distance. I started to do this three times, and each time he caught hold of me and asked me to wait awhile. In a few minutes she straightened up on an even keel. We hurried back and stood by the rail about even with the second funnel. She started to shoot down fast at an angle of about thirty degrees. We shook hands, said goodbye and wished each other luck. We did not give each other any messages for home, because neither of us thought we would ever get back. Then we jumped upon the rail. Your son put his legs over the side, holding onto the rail with his hands, he looked up at me and said, "You're coming, boy, aren't you?" I replied, "Go ahead, I'll be with you in a minute." He let go and slid down the side and I never saw him again. Almost immediately after I jumped. All the last part took a very short time, and when we jumped were about ten yards above the water. Your son was perfectly calm all the time and kept his nerve, even to the very end. I wish I had more to tell you, but I hope this will be of some comfort to you.
I am sending you my picture, thinking you might like to see who was with him at the end. I would treasure it very much if you could spare me one of his.
Mother and I hope that if you and Mrs. Long feel able to you will come and see us, and let us do what we can for you.
With our heartfelt sympathy, believe me,
Sincerely yours,
John B. Thayer, Jr. |
Kritina Johnston
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 10:21 am: | |
There's a word in my post above, "mght", that should be "might". Sorry for the error. |
Edmund Turner
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 17, 2000 - 9:43 pm: | |
Thanks for writing that Kritina , a very intresting letter , I wonder if Mr and Mrs Long ever sent Jack a picture of there son ?
Ed |
Jason D. Tiller
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 18, 2000 - 4:59 pm: | |
Hi Kritina,
Thank you for writing that letter. It was very interesting and obviously very sad. I only knew part of it from reading it in ANTR.
Thanks again for sharing it.
Best regards,
Jason |
Nathan Heddle
| | Posted on Thursday, October 19, 2000 - 12:40 am: | |
Thanks Kritina
That is quite a poignant letter about someone's last hours. I too wonder if Judge Long sent Jack a picture?
nathan |
Jason D. Tiller
| | Posted on Thursday, October 19, 2000 - 2:37 am: | |
I forgot to mention that I am also curious if Milton Long's parents sent Jack Thayer a picture.
Best regards,
Jason |
Kritina Johnston
| | Posted on Thursday, October 19, 2000 - 10:50 am: | |
In all honesty I have no idea if pictures were ever engaged. I'd like to think so. |
Jason Long
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 3:42 am: | |
Hello to all, I'm trying to find out if I have any connection to Milton Clyde Long. I only have a few reasons to even ask.. My name, which is Jason Long and that some of my family, the ones that I know, were born or raised in Massachusetts, my father was one. I have no knowledge in how to find this out and would like as much help as I can get. I know that there is a high percent of families out there that also share this last name. For as long as I can remember, i've always love the sister ships, but mainly the Majestic R.M.S. Titanic. To find that I am related to a passenger on that ship would be a great thing for me... I've looked over the internet to find many answers that I have questions to and to date haven't really found many of those answers. In hopes that this site is different, please, if you can help me, I'd be greatly honored. Thank you. |
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