Queering the Titanic, 1912

This exhibit introduces several of the LGBTQ people who sailed on the Titanic and several of the same-sex relationships, possibly intimate, that developed between people on the ship that sank in 1912. The individuals and relationships discussed include Archibald Butt and Francis Davis Millet; Marie Grice Young and Ella Holmes White; Joseph J. Fynney and Alfred Gaskell; Thomson Beattie, Thomas McCaffry, and John Hugo Ross; and William Thomas Stead. Published originally on OutHistory in 2012. Updated in 2024.

Introduction

R.M.S. Titanic in Southhampton, April 10, 1912. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

In a letter written on April 11, 1912, from the R.M.S. Titanic, Francis Davis Millet wrote to Alfred Parsons and described "a good many of 'our people'" on board—likely referring to gay men. This exhibit covers nine people who potentially had same-sex intimate relationships on the Titanic: Millet, Archibald Butt, Marie Grice Young, Ella Holmes White, Joseph J. Fynney, Alfred Gaskell, Thomson Beattie, Thomas McCaffry, and John Hugo Ross. The exhibit also discusses William Thomas Stead, who was straight but influenced LGBTQ history through his political activity. Each page includes a few sentences about the individual's life and death and a bibliography of recommended sources for more information, including links to OutHistory exhibits that provide more detail about the individual's queer life and their same-sex intimate relationship.