Titanic
You can now watch the Titanic episode of Find My Past the TV show right here on findmypast.co.uk if you have a current findmypast.co.uk subscription.
This episode saw Jessica Wilson, Tim Rickeard and Ben Chivers learn more about their ancestors' connection to the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.
Here we take you on a journey through the records on findmypast.co.uk that our expert researchers used to track down our participants' ancestors.
1911 census
Jessica Wilson's great-great-grandfather, Harold Sydney Bride, worked as a Marconi wireless operator on the Titanic. We unearthed Harold in the 1911 census on findmypast.co.uk. See his record here – click on the image to enlarge it:
We also discovered Tim Rickeard's great-uncle Harold Phillimore in the 1911 census. Harold was on board the Titanic working as a saloon steward when it sank. Here is Harold's record, which you can click on for a larger version:
Passenger lists
Ben Chivers' great-great-aunt, Nellie Walcroft, was a second class passenger on the Titanic on the night it sank. Our research led us to the passenger lists on findmypast.co.uk, where we found two records which include Nellie.
This record shows Nellie on board the Titanic; click on it for a larger version:
Here we can see Nellie's second attempt to emigrate to America in 1919, after her first try was foiled by the Titanic sinking:
Delving further into the passenger lists on findmypast.co.uk, we discovered the Titanic's captain, Edward Smith. Here is the header page and the summary sheet of the passenger list – which are free to view on findmypast.co.uk when you view the page your ancestor appears on – where we can see Edward's signature:
The summary sheet also tells us how many passengers were on board. As was mentioned during the episode, only 62% of 1st class passengers, 41% of 2nd class passengers and 25% of 3rd class passengers survived the sinking of the Titanic.
Search the passenger lists now
Merchant Navy Seamen records
During the episode, Tim Rickeard was lucky enough to see a photo of his great-uncle Harold Phillimore from Harold's Merchant Navy Seaman record. View Harold's record for yourself here:
Fifth Officer Harold Lowe organised the return of lifeboat 14 to rescue more people from the sinking Titanic. We found Harold's Merchant Navy record on findmypast.co.uk, where you can also see his photo:
It's a special moment for anyone tracing their family tree to be able to see a photo of their ancestor.
Search the Merchant Navy Seamen records now
Crew lists
We discovered Tim Rickeard's great-uncle Harold Phillimore's father, Henry (listed in the 1911 census above), in the crew list records on findmypast.co.uk no less than three times:
Search the crew lists for your ancestors
Go behind the scenes in our blog
Read our exclusive 'behind the scenes' interviews with Jessica Wilson and Tim Rickeard who tell us about their emotional experiences of taking part in the show.
Go behind the scenesIf you want to have your say about this episode, visit our Facebook and Twitter pages – we'd love to hear what you think! If you missed the episode first time round, it's repeated on Yesterday at 6pm and 10.35pm on Saturday 29 October.