The American Inquiry Accounts:

The following witnesses at the American Inquiry made no statement at all about the ship sinking.

W. H. Taylor, Fireman in Lifeboat 15 Thomas Jones, Seaman in Lifeboat 8
G. Symons, Lookout in Lifeboat 1
James Widgery, Steward in Lifeboat 9
Samuel S. Hemming, Seaman in Lifeboat 4
Helen W. Bishop, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 7
Dickinson H. Bishop, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 7
Olaus Abelseth, 3rd Class passenger in Collapsible A
Norman Campbell Chambers, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 5
Daisy Minahan, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 14, transferred to Collapsible D
James R. McGough, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 7
Eleanor Elkins Widener, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 4

J. Bruce Ismay, Managing Director of the White Star Line in Collapsible C

Mr. Ismay did not see the Titanic sink.

Page 13:

Mr. ISMAY. I did not see her go down.

Senator SMITH. You did not see her go down?
Mr. ISMAY. No, sir.

Senator SMITH. How far were you from the ship?
Mr. ISMAY. I do not know how far we were away. I was sitting with my back to the ship. I was rowing all the time I was in the boat. We were pulling away.

Charles Herbert Lightoller, 2nd Officer on Collapsible B

Mr. Lightoller claims the ship sank intact.

Page 69:

Senator SMITH. Was the vessel broken in two in any manner, or intact?
Mr. LIGHTOLLER. Absolutely intact.

Senator SMITH. On the decks?
Mr. LIGHTOLLER. Intact, sir.

Alfred Crawford, Steward in Lifeboat 8

Though Mr. Crawford claimed to see the ship go down, he does not state whether she broke apart or not.

Page 116:

Senator SMITH. Did you see the ship go down?
Mr. CRAWFORD. We saw her at a distance; yes, sir.

Senator SMITH. What shape was she in when you saw her last?
Mr. CRAWFORD. It seemed as if her bow was going down first.

Senator SMITH. At how much of an angle?
Mr. CRAWFORD. We saw all the lights going out on the forward part of her.

Senator SMITH. And still burning on the after part?
Mr. CRAWFORD. Yes, sir.

Senator SMITH. How much of the after part was out of the water?
Mr. CRAWFORD. There was a good bit of the stern part out of water.

Senator SMITH. How many decks?
Mr. CRAWFORD. I could not say how many decks there, sir, but it seemed all clear right from amidships to aft.

Harold S. Bride, Marconi Operator on Collapsible B

Harold Bride did claim to see the Titanic sink at a distance of 150 feet from the ship on page 165, but he didn't say anything about the ship breaking up.

Pages 897 and 898:

Senator SMITH. You swam out from under that boat, and at that time you saw the boat sink?
Mr. BRIDE. Which boat?

Senator SMITH. The Titanic.
Mr. BRIDE. A short time after that I saw the Titanic sink.

Senator SMITH. How many minutes afterwards?
Mr. BRIDE. The time was long enough to give me a chance of getting away from the Titanic itself.

Senator SMITH. From the side?
Mr. BRIDE. The distance I estimate at 150 feet.

Senator SMITH. You had time to get 150 feet away from the side, and then she sank?
Mr. BRIDE. Yes.

Herbert John Pitman, 3rd Officer in Lifeboat 5

Mr. Pitman saw the ship go down intact.

Pages 280 and 281:

Senator SMITH. Did you see the Titanic go down?
Mr. PITMAN. Yes, sir.

Senator SMITH. Describe, if you can, how she sank?
Mr. PITMAN. Judging by what I could see from a distance, she gradually disappeared until the forecastle head was submerged to the bridge. Then she turned right on end and went down perpendicularly.

Senator SMITH. Did she seem to be broken in two.
Mr. PITMAN. Oh, no.

Joseph Groves Boxhall, 4th Officer in Lifeboat 2

Officer Boxhall did not see the Titanic actually sink.

Page 245.

Senator SMITH. Did you see the Titanic sink?
Mr. BOXHALL. No; I can not say that I saw her sink.

Frederick Fleet, Lookout in Lifeboat 6

Lookout Fleet did not see the ship go down, as he was too far away.

Pages 327 and 328.

Senator SMITH. Did you see her go down?
Mr. FLEET. No, sir.

Senator SMITH. Why not?
Mr. FLEET. The lights were out, and we were too far away.

Senator SMITH. You could not see her when she disappeared?
Mr. FLEET. No, sir.

Major Arthur G. Peuchen, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 6

Major Peuchen did not seem to actually see the ship break apart, but assumed she did from the sounds he heard, and the wreckage he saw the next morning.

Pages 338 and 339:

Maj. PEUCHEN. We commenced to hear signs of the breaking up of the boat.

Senator SMITH. Of the Titanic?
Maj. PEUCHEN. Of the Titanic. At first I kept my eyes watching the lights, as long as possible.

Senator SMITH. From your position in the boat, did you face it?
Maj. PEUCHEN. I was facing it at this time. I was rowing this way [indicating], and afterwards I changed to the other way. We heard a sort of a rumbling sound and the lights were still on at the rumbling sound, as far as my memory serves me; then a sort of an explosion, then another. It seemed to be one, two, or three rumbling sounds, then the lights went out.

Senator SMITH. From what you saw, do you think the boat was intact, or had it broken in two?
Maj. PEUCHEN. It was intact at that time. I feel sure that an explosion had taken place in the boat, because in passing the wreck the next morning - we steamed past it - I just happened to think of this, which may be of some assistance to this inquiry - I was standing forward, looking to see if I could see any dead bodies, or any of my friends, and to my surprise I saw the barber's pole floating. The barber's pole was on the C deck, my recollection is - the barber shop - and that must have been a tremendous explosion to allow this pole to have broken from its fastenings and drift with the wood.

Harold Godfrey Lowe, 5th Officer in Lifeboat 14

Mr. Lowe states that he did see the Titanic sink. But he does not state, nor was he asked, if the ship broke apart.

Pages 410 and 411:

Senator SMITH. Did you see the Titanic sink?
Mr. LOWE. I did, sir.

Senator SMITH. How did the Titanic go down?
Mr. LOWE. She went down head first and inclined at an angle. That is, when she took her final plunge she was inclined at an angle of about 75º.

Robert Hitchens, Quartermaster in Lifeboat 6

Quartermaster Hitchens claimed not to be able to see the ship when it went down.

Page 452:

Senator SMITH. How far were you from the Titanic at the time she went down?
Mr. HITCHENS. About 1 mile, sir.

Senator SMITH. About a mile from the Titanic?
Mr. HITCHENS. Yes, sir.

Senator SMITH. Could you see the Titanic?
Mr. HITCHENS. I could not see her; not after the lights went out; no, sir.

Senator SMITH. You could see the lights?
Mr. HITCHENS. We could see the lights go out; yes, sir.

George Thomas Rowe, Quartermaster in Collapsible C

Mr. Rowe did hear explosions as the Titanic sank, and saw the stern go under, but did not state whether he saw or thought the ship broke up.

Pages 525 and 526:

Senator BURTON. Did you hear any explosions?
Mr. ROWE. I heard one, sir, after we left the ship. It was not an explosion; a sort of a rumbling.

Senator BURTON. What do you think it was?
Mr. ROWE. I have no idea what it was.

Senator BURTON. Do you think it was boilers exploding?
Mr. ROWE. It was not an ordinary explosion, you understand; more like distant thunder.

Senator BURTON. Was that before or after the ship sank?
Mr. ROWE. Before she sank, sir.

Senator BURTON. Were there more than one of those explosions?
Mr. ROWE. I only heard the one, sir.

Senator BURTON. How far from the ship were you when she went down?
Mr. ROWE. About three-quarters of a mile, sir.

Senator BURTON. Did you see her go down?
Mr. ROWE. I saw her stern disappear at the finish, sir.

Senator BURTON. It was while she was still floating that you heard the explosions?
Mr. ROWE. Heard this rumbling sound, sir.

Senator BURTON. You are quite sure of that, are you?
Mr. ROWE. Positive, sir.

Alfred Olliver, Quartermaster in Lifeboat 5

Quartermaster Oliver states he did not see the sinking clearly, but thought she had broke apart:

Pages 530 and 531:

Senator BURTON. Did you see the boat sink?
Mr. OLLIVER. I can not say that I saw it right plain; but to my imagination I did, because the lights went out before she went down.

Senator BURTON. How did she sink?
Mr. OLLIVER. She was well down at the head at first, when we got away from her at first, and to my idea she broke forward, and the afterpart righted itself and made another plunge and went right down. I fancied I saw her black form. It was dark, and I fancied I saw her black form going that way.

Senator BURTON. Did she careen over, tip over sideways, or did she go ahead?
Mr. OLLIVER. She went ahead, like that [indicating].

Senator BURTON. Did you hear explosions?
Mr. OLLIVER. I heard several little explosions, but it was not such explosions as I expected to hear.

Senator BURTON. Were these before or after she sank?
Mr. OLLIVER. Before she sank and while she was sinking.

Senator BURTON. What did you think those explosions were?
Mr. OLLIVER. Myself, I thought they were like bulkheads giving in.

Frank Osman, Seaman in Lifeboat 2

Seaman Osman states that he saw the Titanic break apart.

Page 541:

Mr. OSMAN. We pulled astern that way again, and after we got astern we lay on our oars and saw the ship go down. After she got to a certain angle she exploded, broke in halves, and it seemed to me as if all the engines and everything that was in the after part slid out into the forward part, and the after part came up right again, and as soon as it came up right down it went again.

Edward Wheelton, Steward in Lifeboat 11

Mr. Wheelton is not specifically asked, nor does he state what happened as the ship went under.

Pages 547 and 548:

Senator NEWLANDS. Did you see the ship go down?
Mr. WHEELTON. I did, sir.

Senator NEWLANDS. Could you see the passengers on the ship when it went down?
Mr. WHEELTON. I could not, sir.

George Moore, Seaman in Lifeboat 3

Seaman Moore did mention that the ship broke in half.

Page 563:

Senator NEWLANDS. How far were you from the ship when it sank?
Mr. MOORE. I should say just over a quarter of a mile, sir.

Senator NEWLANDS. You heard the cries of the people in the water, did you not?
Mr. MOORE. Yes, sir; everybody heard that, sir.

Senator NEWLANDS. Did you see the ship go down?
Mr. MOORE. Yes, sir.

Senator NEWLANDS. What was the appearance of the ship at that point of time?
Mr. MOORE. I saw the forward part of her go down, and it appeared to me as if she broke in half, and then the after part went. I can remember two explosions.

G. A. Hogg, Lookout in Lifeboat 7

Lookout Hogg said he saw the ship sink, but gave no details.

Page 580:

Senator PERKINS. Did you see the Titanic disappear?
Mr. HOGG. Yes, sir.

Senator PERKINS. What was her position when she went down?
Mr. HOGG. She seemed to go down by the head, sir.

Senator PERKINS. At an angle of how many degrees?
Mr. HOGG. Oh, her stern was well up in the air as she went down.

Walter John Perkis, Quartermaster in Lifeboat 4

Walter Perkis was not asked for details on the sinking, not did he give any.

Page 582:

Senator PERKINS. Did you see the Titanic go down?
Mr. PERKIS. Yes, sir.

Senator PERKINS. And you were how far from her at that time?
Mr. PERKIS. Six lengths from her, sir.

John Hardy, Steward in Collapsible D

John Hardy did not say whether the ship sank intact or not.

Page 591:

Senator FLETCHER. How far away were you when the Titanic went down?
Mr. HARDY. We could get a full view of her, unfortunately.

Senator FLETCHER. You could get a full view?
Mr. HARDY. Yes, sir.

Senator FLETCHER. In what way did she go down?
Mr. HARDY. She went down head first.

Senator FLETCHER. The stern almost perpendicular?
Mr. HARDY. Not perpendicular, but almost. Her stern was right out of the water.

William Ward, Seaman in Lifeboat 9

Ward did not give any details of the ship sinking.

Page 599:

Senator FLETCHER. Did she go down gradually after you left her, or did she stay up and then suddenly turn downward?
Mr. WARD. She went very gradually for a while. We could just see the ports as she dipped. We could see the light in the ports, and the water seemed to come very slowly up to them. She did not appear to be going fast, and I was of the opinion then that she would not go. I thought we were only out there as a matter of precaution and would certainly go back to the ship. I was still of the opinion she would float.

Senator FLETCHER. Then did she suddenly turn down?
Mr. WARD. She gave a kind of sudden lurch forward, and I heard a couple of reports, reports more like a volley of musketry than anything else. You would not exactly call them a heavy explosion. It did not seem to me like an explosion at all.

Edward John Buley, Seaman in Lifeboat 10

Mr. Buley was convinced the ship broke in half.

Pages 609 and 610:

Senator FLETCHER. After you left her, her bow continued to go under?
Mr. BULEY. Settled down; yes, sir. She went down as far as the afterfunnel, and then there was a little roar, as though the engines had rushed forward, and she s snapped in two, and the bow part went down and the afterpart came up and staid up five minutes before it went down.

Senator FLETCHER. Was that perpendicular?
Mr. BULEY. It was horizontal at first, and then went down.

Senator FLETCHER. What do you mean by saying she snapped in two?
Mr. BULEY. She parted in two.

Senator FLETCHER. How do you know that?
Mr. BULEY. Because we could see the afterpart afloat, and there was no forepart to it. I think she must have parted where the bunkers were. She parted at the last, because the afterpart of her settled out of the water horizontally after the other part went down. First of all you could see her propellers and everything. Her rudder was clear out of the water. You could hear the rush of the machinery, and she parted in two, and the afterpart settled down again, and we thought the afterpart would float altogether.

Senator FLETCHER. The afterpart kind of righted up horizontally?
Mr. BULEY. She uprighted herself for about five minutes, and then tipped over and disappeared.

Senator FLETCHER. Did it go on the side?
Mr. BULEY. No, sir; went down headforemost.

Senator FLETCHER. That makes you believe the boat went in two?
Mr. BULEY. Yes, sir. You could see she went in two, because we were quite near to her and could see her quite plainly.

Senator FLETCHER. You were near and could see her quite plainly?
Mr. BULEY. Yes, sir.

Senator FLETCHER. Notwithstanding the darkness you could see the outline of the ship?
Mr. BULEY. Yes, sir; we could see the outline of the ship.

Senator FLETCHER. How far were you when she went down?
Mr. BULEY. We were about 200 yards.

George Frederick Crowe, Steward in Lifeboat 14

Mr. Crowe saw the Titanic break in half.

Page 620:

Senator BOURNE. Did you see the ship sink?
Mr. CROWE. I did, sir.

Senator BOURNE. Would you explain in your own way how it appeared to you?
Mr. CROWE. After getting clear of the ship the lights were still burning very bright, but as we got away she seemed to go lower and lower, and she almost stood up perpendicular, and her lights went dim, and presently she broke clean in two, probably two-thirds of the length of the ship.

Senator BOURNE. That is, two-thirds out of the water or two-thirds in the water?
Mr. CROWE. Two-thirds in the water, one-third of the aft funnel sticking up.

Senator BOURNE. How long did that third stick up?
Mr. CROWE. After she floated back again.

Senator BOURNE. She floated back?
Mr. CROWE. She broke, and the after part floated back.

Senator BOURNE. And the bow part, two-thirds of the ship, sank.
Mr. CROWE. Yes, sir; then there was an explosion, and the aft part turned on end and sank.

C. E. Andrews, Steward in Lifeboat 16

Mr. Andrews was unsure whether the ship broke up.

Page 626:

Senator BOURNE. How far were you from the Titanic at the time?
Mr. ANDREWS. I should say about half a mile, sir.

Senator BOURNE. Did you see the Titanic sink?
Mr. ANDREWS. Well, sir, she must have been halfway sinking when I saw her.

Senator BOURNE. Did you hear any explosion or noise?
Mr. ANDREWS. I heard just a small sound, sir; it was not very loud, but just a small sound.

Senator BOURNE. Did you think that the ship broke in two?
Mr. ANDREWS. That I do not know, sir. When we got away in the boat at the last everything seemed to go to a black mist. All the lights seemed to go out and everything went black.

Senator BOURNE. Did the lights go out altogether on the whole ship, or go out in part, and then the remainder go out?
Mr. ANDREWS. They seemed to go out altogether, sir.

John Collins, Cook on Lifeboat B

Mr. Collins does not specifically say he saw the ship split apart, but his comments do seem to indicate he felt the ship was broken apart by the explosions. Collins had been thrown into the water from the Boat Deck going under.

Pages 630 and 631:

Senator BOURNE. When you were in the water, after you came up above the surface of the water, you saw the lights on the Titanic?
Mr. COLLINS. Just as I came up to the surface, sir. Her bow was in the water. She had not exploded then. Her bow was in the water, and I just looked around and saw the lights.

Senator BOURNE. Had she broken in two?
Mr. COLLINS. Her bow was in the water and her stern was up.

Senator BOURNE. But you did not see any break? You did not think she had parted, and broken in two?
Mr. COLLINS. Her bow was in the water. She exploded in the water. She exploded once in the water, and her stern end was up out of the water; and with the explosion out of the water it blew her stern up.

Senator BOURNE. You saw it while it was up?
Mr. COLLINS. Yes, sir; saw her stern up.

Senator BOURNE. How long?
Mr. COLLINS. I am sure it floated for at least a minute.

Senator BOURNE. The lights were still burning?
Mr. COLLINS. No, sir; the lights was out.

Senator BOURNE. How could you see it?
Mr. COLLINS. I was on the collapsible boat at the time.

Senator BOURNE. If it was dark, how could you see?
Mr. COLLINS. We were not too far off. I saw the white of the funnel. Then she turned over again, and down she went.

Frederick Clench, Seaman in Lifeboat 12

Mr. Clench did not know if the ship broke apart, though he did hear several explosions.

Page 638:

Senator BOURNE. Did you see the ship sink?
Mr. CLENCH. Yes, sir.

Senator BOURNE. About a quarter of a mile away?
Mr. CLENCH. About a quarter of a mile away.

Senator BOURNE. Did she sink bow down?
Mr. CLENCH. Bow down; yes, sir.

Senator BOURNE. Did she break in two?
Mr. CLENCH. That I could not say.

Ernest Archer, Seaman in Lifeboat 16

Seaman Brice stated he did not see the Titanic split.

Pages 646 and 647:

Senator BOURNE. Were you sufficiently near so that you could see the ship itself when you were about a quarter of mile away?
Mr. ARCHER. Yes, sir; quite distinguish it.

Senator BOURNE. Do you think the ship broke in two?
Mr. ARCHER. Well, I could not say that, sir.

Senator BOURNE. There was nothing that gave you such an impression?
Mr. ARCHER. No, sir.

Senator BOURNE. You were watching the ship all the time?
Mr. ARCHER. Watching it settle down all the time; yes, sir.

W. Brice, Seaman in Lifeboat 11

Seaman Brice said he did not know if the Titanic sank intact or not.

Page 653:

Senator BOURNE. Did you see her sink?
Mr. BRICE. I saw her sink.

Senator BOURNE. Did she go bow down first?
Mr. BRICE. Bow down first.

Senator BOURNE. Did her stern rise in the air?
Mr. BRICE. She went down almost perpendicular.

Senator BOURNE. Were the lights still in the stern as she sank?
Mr. BRICE. No, sir; she became a black mass before she made the final plunge.

Senator BOURNE. You were about a quarter of a mile away?
Mr. BRICE. Yes, sir.

Senator BOURNE. Have you any idea whether she broke in two or not?
Mr. BRICE. That I could not say, sir.

Albert Haines, Boatswain’s Mate in Lifeboat 9

Mate Haines was not asked and did not state whether the ship broke apart.

Page 659:

Senator SMITH. How far were you from the Titanic? How far off did you lay?
Mr. HAINES. I laid off close to her at first, sir.

Senator SMITH. How close?
Mr. HAINES. Within 100 yards at first, sir, until I saw her going down by the head.

Senator SMITH. You kept within a hundred yards of her?
Mr. HAINES. For a time; yes, sir.

Senator SMITH. Until you saw her going down by the head?
Mr. HAINES. Yes; until I saw she was gradually sinking farther and farther down.

Frank Oliver Evans, Seaman in Lifeboat 10

Seaman Evans said he saw the ship break up.

Page 753:

Senator FLETCHER. Did you see the Titanic after you rowed away from where she was?
Mr. EVANS. Yes, sir.

Senator FLETCHER. How far did you go away?
Mr. EVANS. About 200 yards.

Senator SMITH. Could you see the boat well after you pulled away from her?
Mr. EVANS. You could see her when the lights were clear, and then until she gave the final plunge.

Senator FLETCHER. Did the boat go to pieces or come in two?
Mr. EVANS. She parted between the third and fourth funnels.

Senator FLETCHER. What makes you say that?
Mr. EVANS. The foremost part was gone, and it seemed as if the engines were all gone out.

Senator FLETCHER. You did see the forepart was all gone and youcould see the stern come up horizontally?
Mr. EVANS. Yes, sir.

Senator FLETCHER. After the forepart had disappeared the stern came up and was horizontal with the surface of the water?
Mr. EVANS. Yes, sir.

Senator FLETCHER. And how much of the stern; up to what part of the ship; to the funnels?
Mr. EVANS. From the after funnel to the ensign mast.

Senator FLETCHER. About how much of the ship was afloat then, after the forepart had gone down?
Mr. EVANS. I should say about 200 feet was afloat; that is, of the stern part.

Senator FLETCHER. Could you see that clearly in the outline?
Mr. EVANS. You could see that in the outline. Then she made a sudden plunge, and the stern went right up.

Senator FLETCHER. Then she plunged forward and went right down?
Mr. EVANS. Plunged forward, perpendicular, sir.

Senator FLETCHER. How long was the stern afloat in that horizontal position?
Mr. EVANS. About four or five minutes, I should judge.

Andrew Cunningham, Steward in Lifeboat 4

Mr. Cunningham was not asked how the ship sank.

Page 794:

Mr. CUNNINGHAM: We saw the ship go down then. Then we struck out to look for a boat.
Senator SMITH. You swam around in the water until you saw the ship go down?

Mr. CUNNINGHAM: Until I saw the ship go down.

Frederick D. Ray, Steward in Lifeboat 13

Mr. Ray was also not asked how the ship sank.

Page 809:

Senator FLETCHER. Had you gotten as far as three-quarters of a mile before the lights went out on the Titanic?
Mr. RAY. Yes, sir; we were about a mile off when the lights went out.

Henry Samuel Etches, Steward in Lifeboat 5

Steward Etches did not give any details about sinking intact or not.

Pages 817 and 818:

Mr. ETCHES. We laid off about 100 yards and waited, and the ship started going down; seemed to be going down at the head, and Mr. Pitman gave us the order to head away from the ship, and we pulled off then, I should say, about a quarter of a mile, and laid on our oars.

Senator SMITH. How long?
Mr. ETCHES. We remained until the Titanic sank.

Senator SMITH. Did you see it go down?
Mr. ETCHES. I saw it go down, sir.

Senator SMITH. You could not see who was on the decks from your distance?
Mr. ETCHES. I saw, when the ship rose - her stern rose - a thick mass of people on the after end. I could not discern the faces, of course.

Senator SMITH. Did the boat go down by the head?
Mr. ETCHES. She seemed to raise once as though she was going to take a violent dive, but sort of checked, as though she had scooped the water up and had leveled herself. She then seemed to settle very, very quiet, until the last, when she rose up, and she seemed to stand 20 seconds, stern in that position [indicating], and then she went down with an awful grating, like a small boat running off a shingley beach.

William Burke, Steward in Lifeboat 10

Though Steward Burke claimed to have watched the Titanic's final moments, he gave no details.

Page 823:

Mr. BURKE. The boat was lowered then into the water. One of the sailors took an oar, and I took an oar, and the only other member of the crew, a fireman, got an oar. The sailor steered the boat, and we rowed away from the ship. We got probably about a quarter of a mile away, and remained there. We saw pretty well the last of the ship - the Titanic.

Arthur John Bright, Quartermaster in Collapsible D

Mr. Bright saw the Titanic break apart.

Page 839:

Mr. BRIGHT. I was 50 to 100 yards away, I would say, when she went down. I could not be exact, but about that.

Senator FLETCHER. Did she break in two?
Mr. BRIGHT. She broke in two. All at once she seemed to go up on end, you know, and come down about half way, and then the afterpart righted, itself again and the forepart had disappeared. A few seconds the after part did the same thing and went down. I could distinctly see the propellers - everything - out of the water.

Page 841:

Senator BOURNE. The ship went down by her bow first and you could see the stern, and see the keel on the stern, could you?
Mr. BRIGHT. Yes, sir. Then that righted itself again, got on an even keel again after that.

Senator BOURNE. That is, the stern?
Mr. BRIGHT. It settled down in the water on an even keel

Senator BOURNE. But the bow had disappeared?
Mr. BRIGHT. Yes, sir.

Senator BOURNE. Hence, you assumed that she broke in two.

Senator FLETCHER. Where did she break? Tell us about where she broke in two.
Mr. BRIGHT. Well, it was as near the middle as anything, I should say; but it was dark.

Hugh Woolner, 1st Class passenger in Collapsible D

Hugh Woolner thought the Titanic sank in one piece.

Pages 889 and 895:

Mr. WOOLNER. We got out three oars first, and shoved off from the side of the ship. Then we got her head more or less straightaway, and then we pulled as hard as we could, until, I should think, we were 150 yards away, when the Titanic went down.

Senator SMITH. Did you see her go down?
Mr. WOOLNER. Yes.

Senator SMITH. Were you looking at the Titanic when she went down?
Mr. WOOLNER. Yes.

Senator SMITH. As you were looking at her when she went down, do you think she broke in two?
Mr. WOOLNER. I did not think so.

C. E. Henry Stengel, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 1

page 979-980:

Senator FLETCHER. How far were you from the Titanic when she went down?
Mr. STENGEL. I could not say the distance. I saw all the movements. I saw her first row of port lights go under the water; I saw the next port lights go under the water; and finally the bow was all dark. When the last lights on the bow went under, I said, "There is danger here; we had better row away from here. This is a light boat, and there may be suction when the ship goes down. Let us pull away." The other passengers agreed, and we pulled away from the Titanic, and after that we stopped rowing for awhile, and she was going down by the bow most all the time, and all of a sudden there were four sharp explosions about that far apart, just like this (the witness indicating by snapping his fingers four times), and then she dipped and the stern stood up in the air, and then the cries began for help. I should think that the people who were left on the boat began to jump over. There was an awful wail like.

Senator FLETCHER. Could you see the people?
Mr. STENGEL. No, sir; I could not see any of the people, but I could hear them.

Senator FLETCHER. What was the character of these explosions?
Mr. STENGEL. I do not know, but I should judge it would be a battery of boilers going.

Senator FLETCHER. Might it have been bulkheads giving way?
Mr. STENGEL. I do not know. I have never been familiar with bulkheads giving way; but they were quite hard explosions. She dipped, then, forward, and all you could see was the stern sticking up. When I heard the cries I turned my back. I said, "I can not look any longer."

Archibald Gracie, 1st Class passenger on Collapsible B

At the US Inquiry, Col. Gracie does not give any details as to whether the Titanic broke apart or not.

Pages 994 and 995:

Mr. GRACIE. I was on the raft, which I will speak of, all night. There was a sort of gulp, as if something had occurred, behind me, and I suppose that was where the water was closing up, where the ship had gone down; but the surface of the water was perfectly still, and there were, I say, this wreckage, and these bodies, and there were the horrible sounds of drowning people and people gasping for breath.

Mrs. J. Stuart White, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 8

Although asked bySenator Smith, Mrs. White gives no specific details, though she though it broke in two.

Page 1008:

Mrs. WHITE. We sat there for a long time, and we saw the ship go down, distinctly.

Senator SMITH. What was your impression of it as it went down?
Mrs. WHITE. It was something dreadful. Nobody ever thought the ship was going down. I do not think there was a person that night, I do not think there was a man on the boat who thought the ship was going down. In my opinion the ship when it went down was broken in two. I think very probably it broke in two.

Daniel Buckley, 3rd Class passenger possibly in Lifeboat 13

Mr. Buckley did not say whether the Titanic sank intact or not.

Page 1022:

Senator SMITH. Were you where you could see the ship when she went down?
Mr. BUCKLEY. Yes; I saw the lights just going out as she went down. It made a terrible noise, like thunder.

George A. Harder, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 5

Mr. Harder gave no details of the sinking itself.

Pages 1031 and 1032:

Mr. HARDER. Then we waited out there until the ship went down. We were out there until the ship went down.

Berk Pickard, 3rd Class passenger possibly in Lifeboat 9

Mr. Pickard does not say if the ship broke apart.

Page 1055:

Mr. PICKARD. In regard to the ship, I saw the ship very quickly started sinking, and one rail went under and then another, until in a half an hour, from my point of view, the ship sank altogether.

A. H. Weikman, Barber in Collapsible A

Mr. Weikman did not mention the ship sinking intact or not.

Page 1099:

Senator SMITH. Did you see the ship go down? I mean the Titanic.
Mr. WEIKMAN. Yes; I was afloat on chairs about 100 feet away, looking toward the ship. I seen her sink.

Mahala D. Douglas, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 2

Mrs. Douglas did not say how the ship sank

Page 1101:

Mrs. DOUGLAS In an incredibly short space of time, it seemed to me, the boat sank. I heard an explosion. I watched the boat go down, and the last picture to my mind is the immense mass of black against the starlit sky, and then nothingness.

Emily Bosie Ryerson, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 4

Mrs. Ryerson saw the ship break apart.

Page 1108:

Mrs. RYERSON Then suddenly, when we still seemed very near, we saw the ship was sinking rapidly. I was in the bow of the boat with my daughter and turned to see the great ship take a plunge toward the bow, the two forward funnels seemed to lean and then she seemed to break in half as if cut with a knife, and as the bow went under the lights went out; the stern stood up for several minutes, black against the stars, and then that, too, plunged down, and there was no sound for what seemed like hours

Catherine E. Crosby, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 5

Mrs. Crosby gave no details on the ship itself sinking.

Page 1145:

Mrs. CROSBY We continued a safe distance away from the steamer, probably a quarter of a mile at least, and finally saw the steamer go down very distinctly; we did not see nor hear about any trouble on the steamer that is reported to have taken place afterwards; we got away first, and got away a safe distance, so that we could not see nor hear what took place, until the steamer went down, which was about 2.20 a. m. on the morning of the 15th.

Imanita Shelley, 2nd Class passenger in Lifeboat 12

Mrs. Shelly gave no details.

Page 1148:

Mrs SHELLEY That on reaching a distance of about 100 yards from the Titanic a loud explosion or noise was heard, followed closely by another, and the sinking of the big vessel began.

Eloise Hughes Smith, 1st Class passenger in Lifeboat 6

Mrs. Smith also gave no details.

Page 1150:

Mrs SMITH We were some distance away when the Titanic went down.

Conclusions for the American Inquiry Accounts:

It is clear that very few people stated that the ship sank intact. It is also very obvious that the Senators really did not make that much of an effort to find this out, in many survivors accounts.

In the table below, the category below for those who did not state whether the ship broke apart or not, includes both those who did not say, and those who were unsure what really did happen to the Titanic in the final moments.

American Inquiry Totals

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