Mr Frank Osman

Mr Frank Osman was born on 28 March 1884 in Gosport, Hampshire.

Before joining the White Star Line he served in the British Navy for just over 11 years.

When he signed-on to the Titanic, on 6 April 1912, he gave his address as the 43 High St., (Southampton). He transferred to the Titanic from the Oceanic. He received monthly wages of £5.

Frank was outside the seaman's mess on C Deck when the Titanic collided with the iceberg.  The noise of the collision brought him up to the Forward Well Deck, where he saw the ice that had been knocked off the iceberg.

When the seaman were ordered to clear away the lifeboats, Frank helped load 4 lifeboats before leaving the ship in Lifeboat 2.

According to Frank, No. 2 was 60 to 100 yards off from the Titanic when she went under.  From this distance, he saw the ship explode, break in two, and all the engines slide out.  The stern then came up for a bit, then go down again.  When questioned about the explosions, he thought they were the boilers exploding, and said he saw steam and smoke and lumps of coal coming out of the funnels afterwards.

When questioned as to why 2 did not return to the wreck site to pick up people in the water, he said the lifeboat was almost full.

Frank survived the disaster, and testified at the U.S. Inquiry on 30 April 1912.

Notes
At one point in his U.S. Inquiry testimony, Frank mentions loading 4 boats on the starboard side; later in his testimony, he says 3 on the starboard, one on the port side.

Documents
Crew Particulars of Engagement

Inquiry Testimony
(Courtesy of the Titanic Inquiry Project)
Senate Hearings, 25 April 1912, Testimony

References
Agreement and Account of Crew (PRO London, BT100/259)
George Behe (1991) Titanic Tidbits #1: The Launching of the Lifeboats: A New Chronology
John P. Eaton & Charles A. Haas (1994) Titanic: Triumph & Tragedy, 2nd ed. Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1 85260 493 X
Colonel Archibald Gracie (1913) The Truth about the Titanic. New York, Mitchell Kennerley
Donald Hyslop, Alastair Forsyth and Sheila Jemima (1997) Titanic Voices: Memories from the Fateful Voyage, Sutton Publishing, Southampton City Council. ISBN 0 7509 1436 X
Quinn, Paul (1997) Titanic at Two A.M.
United States Senate (62nd Congress), Subcommittee Hearings of the Committee on Commerce, Titanic Disaster, Washington 1912
Wyn Craig Wade (1979, 1986) The Titanic: End of a Dream. London, Penguin

Contributors
Bill Wormstedt, USA
Brian Ticehurst, UK