Hudson, Bess, Loraine and Trevor Allison
     A wealthy investment banker from Montreal, Hudson J.C. Allison had gone to England on a horse-buying trip. He and his wife, Bess, were returning home with their two children; daughter Loraine and baby son Trevor. The Allisons’ nurse had quit a few weeks prior and in haste they had hired a woman by the name of Alice Catherine Cleaver to care for their children. Alice had been plagued by visions of the ship sinking, and as Titanic went down, she had abandoned the Allisons and taken baby Trevor. She escaped in a lifeboat. Mrs. Allison refused to leave the ship without knowing for certain whether her baby boy was safe. She, Mr. Allison and their daughter Loraine perished. It was alleged in papers after the sinking that Alice was fleeing to Canada to start a new life; that she had murdered her own children three years and had been convicted. But finding her act one of desperation, the courts had released her. It later emerged that Alice Catherine Cleaver (Titanic Survivor) had apparently been confused with one Alice Mary Cleaver (alleged child killer). The perpetuation of the allegation in other books and in a made for television movie compounded the confusion. The apparent mistake led family members in the United Kingdom to take legal action against some of those involved in publishing the allegations. For reasons which are currently unclear this legal challenge was later dropped. As matters stand at the present time it can be stated that no evidence has been found to suggest that the Alice Cleaver on board Titanic was anything other than a "competent nursemaid", and later, a thoroughly respectable wife and mother. What became of Alice Mary Cleaver is unknown.
Portions of this paragraph were taken from EncyclopediaTitanic

John Jacob Astor
     John Jacob Astor was the wealthiest man on Titanic. Indeed he was one of the wealthiest men in the world. His fortune had come through real estate dealings.He was returning from a long vacation in Europe with his young wife Madeline, who was pregnant with their first child. The two had married much to the chagrin of high society. Madeline was only seventeen years old and Astor had divorced his wife of many years to woo the young girl, who was, in fact, younger than some of Astor’s sons. They had fled to Europe after being all but shunned by the upper crust. As Titanic sank, Astor was denied entry into the lifeboat Madeline was put into. His ravaged corpse was found several days after the sinking. His wife Madeline survived and gave birth to a son in August of 1912, who she named after her late husband. She married twice more during her life and died in Palm Beach, Florida in 1940 at the age of 47.

Lawrence Beasly
     A science teacher from London’s Dulwich College, Lawrence Beesley was on a holiday. Traveling Second Class, Beesley had marveled at Titanic’s size and luxury. Before sailing from Southampton, Second Class passengers had been allowed to tour the First Class sections of the ship and Beesley had taken particular interest in the physical fitness equipment in the gym. Beesley was allowed into a lifeboat and survived Titanic’s sinking. He recalled later in his published account of the disaster that he supposed the officer loading the boat thought him to be a lady because he had never dressed. He was in his sleeping gown when he stepped into the lifeboat.

J. Bruce Ismay
     Bruce Ismay was often described as egomaniacal. His only love, it seemed to many, were his ships. He, more than anyone, came under close scrutiny following the loss of Titanic; not only because he survived, but because it rumored that it was he who pressured Captain Smith into proceeding at full speed into dangerous waters, despite numerous iceberg warnings. After the disaster, Ismay was never able to speak of Titanic. He resigned from IMM in June of 1913, but was denied the position of managing director for White Star, a position he had all but secured before Titanic’s sinking. He withdrew from public life and spent his time either at his London home or a country home in Ireland. He died in 1937.

Charles Herbert Lightoller
     Charles Herbert Lightoller had been with White Star Line since 1900. Before that he had led an adventurous life; having been shipwrecked on a deserted island, prospected for gold in the Yukon and had worked as a cowboy in the Canadian West. He had served as first officer on Oceanic before transferring to Titanic. His position was to be that of first officer, but when Captain Smith decided to bring on Henry Wilde as his chief officer, Lightoller was bumped to second officer, with William Murdoch bumped down to first. Lightoller was the highest ranking officer to survive. He did so by clinging to the bottom of an overturned lifeboat. Despite his efforts to protect his employers at the inquiries that followed the disaster, Lightoller found his hopes of commanding his own ship dashed. It was only during World War I that he was made a commander, while in the Royal Navy. Lightoller eventually settled inland and was a successful chicken farmer. During World War II, he used his private yacht, Sundowner, to assist in the evacuation at Dunkirk. He advised the makers of the film A Night to Remember, although he was critical of the way the film portrayed some of the ship’s officers. He died in December of 1953.

Arthur & Emily Ryerson
     Arthur and Emily Ryerson were in Paris with their son John and two daughters when they learned by telegram that their oldest son had been killed in an automobile accident near Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. They immediately booked passage on Titanic and Mrs. Ryerson made funeral arrangements for April 19th, two days after Titanic was to dock in New York. For the majority of the voyage she had secluded herself in their cabin and rarely ventured out. Sadly, Mr. Ryerson was lost when Titanic sank. Faced the loss of her husband and son, Mrs. Ryserson was put through the ordeal of planning two funerals upon her arrival in New York. It took her years to overcome the loss. During World War I, she worked for the American Fund for the French Wounded and received the Croix de Guerre for her achievements. She eventually remarried in1927. She died while vacationing in Montevido, Uruguay in 1939.

This page will be updated regularly to add more stories of the lives changed (and ended) by the maiden voyage of RMS Titanic...