Albert William Stanley Nichols

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Comment and discuss

1. That scenario is certainly possible but for the port-side D-deck gangway door to be still a "good distance" above the water when it was opened, Nichols must have opened it around 01:00am or even slightly earlier like some theories suggest. As things stand I don't agree with that theory because from then till the Titanic actually sank is too long a time for only a couple of sightings - one of them disputed - of the boatswain to have taken place. Nichols was a big, burly Australian and during his presence on the boat deck would have been... Read full post
2. Your applying your own sense of logic here. As far as why wasn't that one door locked, one can argue that the only order was simply to get the door unlocked, which they did. The evidence, as best I understand it, is that the forward D-deck door gate was raised so that the door could be opened. The door was seen on the wreck in an opened condition before it broke off, and some of the locking handles are missing, suggesting that they had eventually brok off as the door itself did, from what I understand. At the time the door was opened, the ship was listing to starboard by most accounts, and unless it was swung open wide, it would have had a tendency to close. There are no accounts from anyone in boats 6 or 8 that said they saw an open gangway door as those boats were lowered, suggesting to me that the door was not swung wide open, but was allowed to close if opened at all. So... Read full post
3. I have always wondered about how practical using a Jacob's ladder to get into a lifeboat would have been had they tried it. Yes, I know that many passengers used ladders to get on board the Carpathia later but that was a different scenario. It was daylight, the ship was steady, they were not pressed for time and there were plenty of crew on hand to help. But to climb down a ladder into a lifeboat in darkness from a steadily sinking ship with the sea closing all the time would have been a totally different proposition IMO. More than anything else, all concerned would have been aware of passing time and would those demure First Class ladies - or even Third Class women and children for that matter - have been able to use the ladder swiftly enough to make the effort... Read full post
4. As I have said before, I am not that interested in this thread particularly, but I am interested in the evidence and how it is dealt with, which might be a surprise from the number of my posts here recently. My “own sense of logic” I thought was, according to Sam’s on other matters, to challenge and test the available evidence. We have an open D deck port forward door raised from the wreck with it’s aft locks completely missing. Lightoller ordered apparently Nichols and his gang to E deck. It is assumed that Nichols disobeyed this order by instead opening a D deck port door as described by Thomas. Then it is suggested on here that they failed to lock it again properly such that it would open as the ship dived down to the floor of the ocean. You turn a handle. Well, a number of handles, but not rocket science. It is a door! Ok a heavy door, but the weight is probably taken by the hinges. The locking mechanism is simple and easy to understand and use. Then apparently we... Read full post
5. As I have said before, I am not that interested in this thread particularly, but I am interested in the evidence and how it is dealt with, which might be a surprise from the number of my posts here recently. My “own sense of logic” I thought was, according to Sam’s on other matters, to challenge and test the available evidence. We have an open D deck port forward door raised from the wreck with it’s aft locks completely missing. Lightoller ordered apparently Nichols and his gang to E deck. It is assumed that Nichols disobeyed this order by instead opening a D deck port door as described by Thomas. Then it is suggested on here that they failed to lock it again properly such that it would open as the ship dived down to the floor of the ocean. You turn a handle. Well, a number of handles, but not rocket science. It is a door! Ok a heavy door, but the weight is probably taken by the hinges. The locking mechanism is simple... Read full post
6. 13901. Will you point out on the starboard side where they are? - There are gangway doors one on each side there. (Pointing on the model.) 13902. About where you are pointing now? - Yes, there are two doors one above and one below on the starboard side, but there is only one on E deck on the port side. The other gangway doors are here. 13903. In the afterpart? - Yes. 13903a. What deck do those gangway doors open from? - E deck. 13904. Were your orders general, or did they refer to one set of gangway doors in particular? -... Read full post
7. Hi Arun, I am very sorry, but if Lightoller ordered Nichols and his gang to open an E deck gangway door, then if they didn’t do this then Nichols was not complying with /disobeying Lightoller’s order to him. Cheers, Julian
8. We don't know for sure what his orders were. Lightoller might have been thinking the E deck door but if he didn't say it and they went to the D deck door instead they were following orders. He said that is what he remembers, but we have no witnesses to his orders. The only two things that corroborate that he did issue an order of that kind is Nichols disappearance for a while and the forward port D deck door being found open on the wreck in 1985. Someone opened that door and it fits with the intent of Lightoller's orders.
9. Here we go again. Lightoller testified very clearly that he did NOT specify any particular gangway door to Nichols. I have posted the relevant excerpt of that testimony above, but looks like you chose to ignore it. So again: 13904. Were your orders general, or did they refer to one set of gangway doors in particular? - General. As to Lightoller's allusion to the E-deck gangway door, if you read the sequence of questions and answers from 13900 to 13903a, it is quite clear that the committee was discussing the general position of gangway doors on both sides of the ship and Lightoller was pointing out in the model that there was only one E-deck door on the port side. He never said that he ordered Nichols to open that... Read full post
10. How many gangway doors where on the Titanic? If there was four or even more why weren't they used as well?

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