Stanley Harrington Fox

Mr Stanley Harrington Fox ¹ was born in Henrietta, Monroe, New York on 13 April 1874.²

He was the son of Charles Morton Fox (b. 1848), a grocer, and Mary Elizabeth Harrington (b. 1848), both natives of New York. He had one brother, Morton R. (b. 1873), and a sister named Mabel (b. 1879).

He first appears on the 1875 census living at the home of his grandfather Stephen Harrington in Henrietta. The family were still in that town by the time of the 1880 census and his father was now described as a carpenter. By 1892 the family were living in Rochester, Monroe and Stanley, aged 18, was described as a clerk. He was later described as a machinist on the 1905 census before becoming a salesman for Rochester's Gleason Works, selling machinery to automobile plants.

He was married in 1899 to Cora Ellen Morton (b. 17 May 1875) of Erie, New York, the daughter of a farmer. The couple settled in Rochester and had two sons: Raymond H. (1901-1968) and Clifford Stanley (1905-1967).

Fox had reportedly been on business in Birmingham, England before booking a return passage to America (ticket number 229236 which cost £13) with the Grand Trunk Co. He boarded the Titanic at Southampton on 10 April and during the voyage would celebrate his 38th birthday.

On the night of the collision Fox had spent time socialising with fellow passenger Charles Whilems, who later recalled:

"A party of four of us had been smoking and playing cards in the second cabin smoking room when the shock came... There was a man named Fox, a Texas ranchman, one other man, and myself. We felt a slight jar, and hastened to the deck. Even as we did so, we saw the iceberg, huge and white against the dark blue sea, go whizzing past on the starboard side of the ship, just clear of the stern. We returned immediately to the smoking room, and finished our game of cards. By that time we could hear many voices on deck, and again went out to learn what had happened..."

Mr Fox died in the sinking and his body was later recovered by the MacKay Bennett (#236):

When his remains were brought back to Halifax, Nova Scotia a woman identifying herself as Lydia Fox and claiming to be his sister-in-law stated that as Mr Fox's widow Cora was 'prostrated in Rochester' over the death of her husband, Lydia was authorized to act on her behalf. The officials saw no reason to doubt her story so they released the body and personal effects to be loaded on Lydia's train home. However, shortly before the train departed, they received a telegram from Mrs Fox, instructing that the body not be released to Lydia Fox and to retain the personal effects.

While retaining the personal effects, they initially allowed the body on the train. However, while the train was en route from Halifax, they received information that a possible insurance fraud was being perpetrated, so at the next stop, the body was off loaded; an ignorant Lydia Fox continuing on her journey. Lydia Fox (née Annis, 1872-1957) was indeed Stanley's sister-in-law and was married to his elder brother Morton.

After an additional telegram from the mayor of Rochester, Mr Fox's body and effects were finally routed home and his funeral was conducted on 6 May 1912. He is buried in Mount Hope Cemetery in Rochester. His widow Cora never remarried and remained in Rochester for the rest of her life. She died on 22 October 1941 and is buried alongside her husband.