Lenawee County had its share of connections to sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912

Many historic events that have taken place in the United States and abroad have had witnesses or victims tied to Lenawee County, whether known or obscure.

Quakers and human rights activists Elizabeth Comstock and Laura Haviland — both of Lenawee County — for instance, had the personal confidence of President Abraham Lincoln in the 1860s. Exactly 47 years later, a global disaster found its way to small communities in Lenawee County: the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912.

The first mention of the liner came in the Saturday, Oct. 17, 1908, Daily Telegram. A pair of new ships, each headlined as a “marine monster” were to be constructed by Harland and Wolff in Belfast, Northern Ireland: “Olympic is to be the name of the record-breaker under way and her sister ship will be called the Titanic.”

Fast forward to June 1, 1911. The Telegram carried a front page news brief reporting Titanic was launched the day before. Ships at the time were built on land until they were like that of a large, lightweight canoe, launched into the water and then towed to a pier where the vessel’s heavy machinery and fittings would be added. This process was wrapped up for Titanic March 31, 1912, two weeks before she would set sail for her fatal voyage.

While the United Kingdom and Ireland amply covered the start of Titanic’s maiden voyage, the news of Titanic’s first trip did not reach Lenawee County until Monday, April 15.

“Huge liner Titanic hits iceberg and in damaged condition” was the leading headline on the Telegram’s front page that day. At that time, it was believed that, while the ship was sinking, help was on the way and passengers were being transferred to a convoy of other ships at the scene. On April 16, it was revealed the ship had sunk, killing 1,496 and leaving 712 behind as witnesses to one of the greatest disasters at sea. They were saved by one ship, Carpathia, which arrived at the scene about two hours after the sinking.

The global news turned to local ties April 17 as more details were released. In Hudson, the Halstead siblings held vigil, waiting to hear the fate of their brother-in-law, Edward Crosby. Harriett and Charles Halstead were informed their sister, Catherine Crosby was on board and listed as a survivor. His death was soon confirmed, and Hudson residents joined the Halsteads in mourning.

In Blissfield, relatives of William Harbeck also mourned the loss of their relative, while in Adrian, several had received word the previous week their friends were planning to sail to the United States from abroad on Titanic. It was determined that they had taken other ships, after all, being spared from a high probability of death.

At the time, Anne Kelly had no ties to Lenawee County, but as one of only three survivors of a group of 14 setting off from Ireland, she went on to become a Dominican Sister, adopting the name of Sister Patrick Joseph Kelly. In her final years, she moved to the Adrian campus, where she died Dec. 28, 1969. She was buried in the Adrian Dominican Sisters Cemetery, the only Titanic survivor to be later buried in the county.

Dan Cherry is a Lenawee County historian.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Dan Cherry: Lenawee County connections to Titanic disaster