Harland And Wolff Guarantee Group
The nine-man Harland
& Wolff Guarantee Group was a select group of workers, headed
of course by Thomas
Andrews, who would all accompany Titanic on her maiden voyage
to see to either any unfinished work, or perhaps problems that might
appear on the voyage to New York and back.
Membership of this elite group of men was very select, and was based on a person's enthusiasm and ability. It was considered to be a mark of respect from the employers, Harland & Wolff, to be selected for the group, especially where apprentices were concerned.
Sadly, all of the members of the Guarantee Group were lost in the sinking. No doubt they were doing their best, much like Titanic's Engineers, to keep the vessel afloat for as long as was possible.
They are remembered, along with many others, on the Belfast Memorial.
Thomas Andrews
Thomas Andrews obviously has an entire page dedicated to him, you can read all about him and his involvement with the design and construction of the Titanic in some detail.
William Campbell was an Apprentice Joiner at Harland & Wolff. He was only a young lad, and still lived at home with his parents in Belfast much like many other apprentices at the works at that time.
In a sad twist to his story, his older married sister was on the verge of dying after a long illness. She desperately wanted to see her younger brother William one more time, but his trip on Titanic meant that this could not be. When the news of the sinking arrived in Belfast, his sister was beside herself with grief. She died on Tuesday, 16th April, just one day after Titanic's sinking.
Roderick Chisholm was the Chief Draughtsman at Harland & Wolff, and knew Olympic and Titanic almost as well as Thomas
Andrews did, somebody with whom he had worked very closely on not just
the Olympic-class liners, but others before them
too.
Chisholm was born and raised in Scotland, and went to work for Harland & Wolff at their Clyde works, but was transferred to Belfast in 1892, no doubt because of his ability. He was married four years later to Susan Anderson in 1896, and they had two children, a girl and a boy, born in 1897 and 1898 respectively.
In his position at Harland & Wolff, he had, ironically, also been responsible for designing Titanic's lifeboats, although the amount of lifeboats the ship was equipped with was not his decision.
After the disaster, the mother of Thomas Andrews invited Susan Chisholm and her two children to the Andrews' family house 'Ardara', in Comber.
Alfred Fleming Cunningham was an Apprentice Fitter at Harland & Wolff. He lived in Belfast with his mother, three brothers, and two sisters
A tragic twist in Cunningham's story involved a local newspaper who had unfortunately reported that Alfred had survived, much to the obvious delight of his family. This was the result of a mix-up with another 'A. Cunnningham' who was also aboard Titanic and survived. Alfred's family received the terrible news six later that he had indeed been lost in the sinking from Harland & Wolff, and it must have come as a much worse blow than just hearing that he'd died.
Archie (Artie) Frost was a Foreman Fitter at Harland & Wolff. His
father had been a Foreman Fitter before him at the shipyard, and Archie joined
the company in 1888.
He lived in Belfast with his wife, Lizzie Jane, and their four children.
In a remarkable twist to Archie Frost's story, his wife Lizzie died within one day of Susan Chisholm, the wife of Roderick Chisholm, another member of the nine-man Guarantee Group.
Robert Knight was a Leading Hand Fitter at Harland & Wolff, and had worked there for some twenty-one years, and he earned himself a promotion in 1903.
He lived in Belfast with his wife and four children.
Francis (Frank) Parkes lived in Belfast with his parents and
his four brothers, Matthew, Robert George, Frederick and Charles, all of whom
worked for Harland & Wolff. He also had two sisters, Lily and Violet Maude.
Like the other apprentices who formed part of the Harland & Wolff Guarantee Group, he was aboard Titanic because of his potential, and his future at the Belfast shipbuilders would probably have looked rosy indeed.
Henry William Marsh Parr was the Assistant Manager of the Electrical Department at Harland & Wolff. He had a wife and young child, and lived in Belfast.
He was originally from Lancashire, England, and had served an apprenticeship as an electrician with the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway until early 1910, when he went to Ireland to work for Harland & Wolff.
He had supervised the electrical installations of both Olympic and Titanic , which made him a perfect candidate for the Guarantee Group.
Ennis Hastings Watson was an Apprentice Electrician at Harland & Wolff.
He had been studying at Belfast Municipal Technical Institute for five years, and during his time there he was awarded many qualifications, so he was obviously not afraid to work. He was taken-on by Harland & Wolff, and, like the other apprentices in the Guarantee Group, probably had a bright and fulfilling future at the Belfast shipbuilders laid-out before him.
Related Reading: Harland & Wolff | Arrol Gantry
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