My grandmother being interviewed about her Titanic experience by Charles Ira Sachs of Transatlantic Research, Universal City, CA.
Maud on Encyclopedia Titanica
Miss Maude Sincock, known as Maudie and Maud, was born on 17 April 1891 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the daughter of Mr. Francis (Frank) Sincock (a Plumber in St. Ives for Mr. J. J. Johns) and Mrs. Melinda Sincock, (Nee Hosking), a Canadian. She had 10 siblings. Her father was originally from Cornwall, England and they moved back to Halsetown, St. Ives, Cornwall when Maude was young.
Maude’s oldest sister Alice immigrated to Michigan in April 1909. Soon after her father immigrated to Hancock, Michigan in October 1911. He worked for the Quincy Mining Company. Maude left Halsetown, St. Ives in early 1912 leaving her mother and 7 siblings. Her mother would rejoin the family after the birth of her 11th child.
Titanic
She travelled to Southampton and boarded the Titanic, as a second class passenger, along with friends (or distant relatives) of her mother’s, Mrs. Agnes Davies and her sons, John Davies and Joseph Nicholls. She and her travelling companions had been booked on another ship, however, the coal strike had forced other ships to transfer their coal and passengers to the Titanic. Maude was not upset “It was a lovely ship.”
They boarded at noon and were very excited. Miss Sincock, Mrs Davies, and young John Davies shared a room in second class with Alice Phillips. Maude held ticket C.A. 33112.
Lunch was being served as the Titanic left dock. It was a lovely day and Maude found the other second class passengers to be very friendly. The next days were wonderful, they had excellent weather all the way.
The Iceberg
On the night of April 14, Maude was in bed. The Titanic struck the iceberg and according to Miss Sincock “It didn’t seem so bad to me, but very soon after a steward came along banging on every door calling, ‘Everyone on deck with lifebelts.’ ”
Maude got up quickly and put a raincoat over her nightgown. She opened the door and watched people ask the steward if the Titanic was going to sink. He told them it was only a precaution. She went down the passage toward the second class elevator, only to find the lift boy gone. She then had to climb five or six decks up before reaching the boat deck.
Lifeboat #11
Crowds of passengers were on deck, jostling each other as they tried to find friends. Maude found it useless to try to get through the crowds and stayed put, although she went to the railing and watched the lifeboats being filled. Maude carried her lifebelt, rather than putting it on. She waited for her turn. A sailor said, ‘This boat is full enough,” but Maude waited and got into another one, (possibly lifeboat #11).
She turned and looked back toward the deck and saw the firemen coming up, wearing their working clothes. She realized then that the situation was bad, in the distance, Maude could hear the band playing. The boat lowered into the water. The ocean was calm, the air very cold.
A sailor told her, ‘She’s going fast.” Looking back, she could see the lights disappearing as the bow sank down, water pouring into open portholes. Flares were being fired, although they failed to bring help. As the Titanic sank and broke apart, Maude thought the loud noise she heard was the boilers exploding. The lifeboat rowed around all night long among the icebergs.
The Rescue
As morning came a sailor called out “That’s a ship”, as he saw a speck appear on the horizon. The lifeboat was rowed toward the Carpathia. Getting aboard the Carpathia involved getting into a bosun’s chair, facing the side of the ship, and “walking up the side as two sailors hoisted you up.” Maude found the passengers aboard the Carpathia to be very helpful. They did all they could for us.” On board the Carpathia, she discovered that Mrs Davies son Joseph Nichols had been among those who perished. Maude spent her 21st birthday aboard the Carpathia.