Mr Joseph Beattie

Mr Joseph Beattie, 34, of 3 Isthmus Street, Belfast, was born in 1877. He was married to Maria and had three daughters: Maria, Margaret and Agnes, and a son: Joseph (their ages ranged from 5 to 13).

Beattie had previously worked on the Olympic. When he first signed-on to the Titanic on 29 March 1912 he left a cross (x) and his name was signed for him. The register states that he was due aboard at 4 am on 1 April for the sea trials but because of bad weather the trials did not take place until 2 April. Beattie was also aboard for the delivery trip from Belfast to Southampton which began at 8 pm on 2 April.

When he re-signed on 6 April 1912, He appears to have signed his own name. He gave the Sailors' Home, Southampton as his local address. As a greaser he received a monthly salary of £6 10s.

Beattie died in the sinking. His body, if recovered, was never identified.

Maria Beattie later sued the White Star Line and was awarded £96, 13s, 4d; Margaret and Maria, her daughters received £35 each. Agnes, the youngest daughter, recieved £40, and Joseph received £78, 1s, 8d.

On the first anniversary of the sinking, Maria placed the following poem in the Belfast Telgraph.

I often sit and think of him
When I am all alone,
For memory is the only friend
That grief can call its own.
Like ivy on the withered oak
when other things decay,
My love for him will still keep green
and never fade away.

Notes
His entry in the Southampton signing-on register appears to read "F. Beattie".

Documents
Crew Particulars of Engagement

References
Belfast Telegraph, 15 April 1913
Stephen Cameron (1998) Titanic: Belfast's Own. Wolfhound Press, Dublin. ISBN 0 86327 685 7
Agreement and Account of Crew (PRO London, BT100/259)
Particulars of Engagement (Belfast), Ulster Folk and Transport Museum (TRANS 2A/45 381)
United States Senate, Washington 1912. n° 806, Crew List

Contributors
Bill Wormstedt, USA