Archie Jewell | |
|---|---|
 Jewell during his World War I service | |
| Born | Archie Jewell (1888-12-04)4 December 1888 |
| Died | 17 April 1917(1917-04-17) (aged 28) |
| Occupation |
|
Archie Jewell (4 December 1888 – 17 April 1917) was an English sailor who was on the crew of theTitanic. He survived the sinking of theTitanic and its sister shipHMHSBritannic, but died during the sinking of theSSDonegal when it was torpedoed without warning by German forces during the course ofWorld War I.[1][2]
Archie Jewell was the youngest child of John Jewell, a sailor, and his wife Elizabeth Jewell. He had six older siblings, two sisters and four brothers. His mother died on 9 April 1891.
In 1903, at the age of 15, Jewell began working on smaller sailing ships. He joined theWhite Star Line in 1904. Jewell served as a full seaman on theOceanic for almost eight years, during which time he lived in Southampton. He was married sometime around 1916 to Bessie Heard and moved toBitterne with her. Bessie Jewell gave birth to their son, Raymond Hope Jewell, in autumn 1916.
On 6 April 1912 Jewell was transferred to theTitanic as one of six lookouts along with 24-year-oldGeorge Symons. Jewell was scheduled to be in the crow's nest between 20:00 and 22:00 and then from 2:00 to 4:00, during the night of 15 April 1912.
At around 22:00 Jewell and Symons were replaced by their colleaguesReginald Lee andFrederick Fleet. Jewell was in his cabin at 23:40 when the iceberg collision occurred. At 00:40, Jewell was one of the first to escape the sinking in lifeboat 7.
After arriving inNew York City on theRMSCarpathia, Jewell returned to England on 29 April 1912 on board theSSLapland. He was among the first witnesses interviewed by Lord Justice Mersey on 3 May 1912 before the British Committee of Inquiry on the accident. At least 331 questions were asked.
Jewell worked onHMHSBritannic duringWorld War I. He survived the sinking of theBritannic on 21 November 1916 along with two otherTitanic survivors,Violet Jessop, a stewardess, andArthur John Priest, a stoker.
In 1916 Jewell left the White Star Line and was hired on theSSDonegal, a passenger ship put into service in 1904. TheDonegal was converted into a hospital ship during World War I and transported wounded soldiers from France to England. On 1 March 1917 one of these voyages involved contact with a German submarine. Badly damaged, theDonegal could get to safety, but it was never repaired. On 17 April 1917 another German submarine fired without warning on theDonegal. The ship went down in theEnglish Channel, about 19 nautical miles (35 km) south of the Deanlight vessel. The 28-year-old Jewell was one of the 12 crew members who died, along with 29 British soldiers. Jewell's body was never recovered. John Priest was also on board, but survived.
A plaque commemorates Jewell at theTower Hill Memorial, in London. Archie Jewell was survived by his wife and son, his father, and all six of his siblings; his son died inExeter on 10 December 1930, at the age of 14, after a serious illness.
