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Robbie1878 — Sydney Birkett

#cemetry #headstone #ship #rmscarpathia #atlantic #carpathia #graveyard #photograph #photography #rescue #rmstitanic #shipwreck #titanic
Published: 2021-08-02 19:45:47 +0000 UTC; Views: 1140; Favourites: 27; Downloads: 0
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My latest in my Titanic related stories is that of the grave of Sydney Percival Birkett, the third person that is connected to the disaster buried in Wallasey cemetry. Mr Birkett was born in Liverpool, England on 23 June 1888. In April 1912 Sydney Birkett was serving as a waiter aboard the eastward-bound voyage of the RMS Carpathia when the ship helped to rescue survivors of the Titanic. The Carpathia was in service until 1918  when it was sunk by a German U-boat off the coast of Ireland.


On April 11, 1912, the Carpathia departed from New York City for Fiume, carrying some 740 passengers. On April 15 at approximately 12:20 am, the ship received a distress call from the Titanic, which had struck an iceberg and was sinking. Capt. Arthur Henry Rostron ordered the Carpathia to the Titanic’s position, which was about 58 miles (107 km) away, and began preparing the ship for any survivors. Despite the presence of icebergs, the ship traveled at top speed (some 17 knots), arriving at approximately 3:30 am. The Titanic had sunk more than an hour earlier, but the Carpathia rescued 705 people in lifeboats. The ship returned to New York City on April 18. The actions of Rostron and the Carpathia’s crew were credited with preventing further loss of life, and Rostron was awarded a U.S. Congressional Gold Medal.


Following the Titanic disaster Birkett served aboard the Lusitania (also sunk in WWI, but he wasn't on it then), followed by Laconia. He served as assistant barman aboard later vessels and worked at sea during WWI with the merchant fleet. He was married in 1920 to Emily McGuire (b. 1890) and they raised a family in Wallasey (then Cheshire, now part of Merseyside).


Sydney Birkett died in Wallasey on 7 March 1957


A colourised photo of him is in the comments..

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oisinnoir [2021-08-21 13:18:24 +0000 UTC]

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