While the Titanic is most known for how many victims it claimed, many families survived and lived prosperous lives, three well-known here in Illinois.
In St. Charles, Illinois, situated in State Representative Dan Ugaste’s district, the Johnson Family were a part of the 700 survivors. Alice Johnson and her two young children, Harold and Eleanor boarded the Titanic to return home to Illinois after being in Finland to visit Alice’s ill father. Unfortunately, Alice’s father passed away before the family could make it to Finland, so they bought tickets in third class for the Titanic, as it was headed for New York.
In third class, the family only had a 20% chance of surviving and all three ended up being rescued. The family returned to north-eastern Illinois and remained there for the rest of their lives. To commemorate the survivors, in 2019, the St. Charles History Museum set up a Titanic Exhibit to honor the lives of the St. Charles natives, Alice, Harold, and Eleanor Johnson, who beat the odds of survival.
The Caldwell Family, not native to Illinois, settled in the central Illinois city of Bloomington, which sits in Rep. Regan Deering’s district, after they too were aboard the Titanic in 1912. Albert and Sylvia, with their young son, Alden, were passengers on the Titanic after wishing to return to the United States after the birth of their son. The pair were missionaries, serving in Thailand and Siam.
Once in London, the Caldwells were told that they could not board the Titanic, as they were at capacity, but were told to wait around. As cancellations rolled in, room was made for the family in second-class, where they began their journey back to the states.
After returning to New York after the near-fatal journey, the family moved to Bloomington and were the first and only known Titanic survivors to live in the area. Sylvia became a well-known community advocate in her church and various organizations in the community like the Bloomington-Normal Art Association. Sylvia was also the 11th person to be hired at the newly formed insurance company, State Farm, which now leads in the industry. A book was published regarding their story and their involvement in the community, The Caldwells’ Story of Survival.
Over in north-western Illinois, the Becker Family was also headed back to the United States after Allen, a pastor, was sent to serve in India. After their son Richard was born, the family was notified by doctors that their son needed serious medical intervention. This news was troubling to the Becker Family, so Nellie and her three children began the journey back to the U.S. to ensure her son got the treatment he needed, leaving behind her husband Allen.
The Beckers’ were second-class passengers on the Titanic and all four survived. Once back in the United States, the family moved to Princeton, a village in Bureau County, which sits in the middle of Deputy Leader Ryan Spain’s district. The Beckers’ ill son, that brought them to Illinois, Richard, moved away from north-western Illinois and lived in central Illinois, choosing Jacksonville and later Peoria, where he worked as a safety supervisor for many years at Caterpillar, a great agribusiness asset to the state.
To learn more about the Titanic and hear the stories of other passengers, The Life on the Titanic Exhibit in Pontiac, which is in State Representative Dennis Tipsword’s district allows tourists to view items from the time period and visit an exhibit that displays the life of those on the RMS Titanic and the elegant Edwardian Age.