Rigel (dog)
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Rigel was a large black Newfoundland dog who was said to have saved some of the survivors of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. One account of the story was published in the New York Herald, April 21, 1912,[1] the other was the book Sinking of the Titanic and Great sea disasters[2] by Logan Marshall, published 1912.[3] However, although the story has been widely reproduced, there is certain doubt about whether the dog actually existed.[4]
Dog
Rigel was said to have been owned by William McMaster Murdoch, the First Officer of the Titanic.[5] Murdoch died in the sinking, but Rigel swam away, and stayed close to one of the lifeboats.[6] When RMS Carpathia arrived on the scene looking for survivors, Rigel began to bark. The lifeboat had drifted under the bows of the Carpathia, and was at risk of being run down, but the people in the boat were too exhausted to make themselves heard.[7] Rigel's barks alerted Captain Arthur Rostron, who ordered the engines stopped and began the search for survivors.[8] Everyone in the lifeboat was saved, and Rigel was pulled from the icy water after three hours, unaffected by the experience.[6] The dog was too large to be pulled from the water by hand, but Jonas Briggs managed to get a canvas sling under its belly, with which it was hauled aboard.[9]
This story was told by Jonas Briggs, a seaman aboard the Carpathia.[7] Briggs later adopted the dog.[10] Doubts have been raised about the story. It seems that Jonas Briggs was not in fact a crew member of the Carpathia. Also, none of the survivors in lifeboat number four mentioned the dog. So the story might be untrue.[11] An other theory, by notably Stanley Coren PhD, claims that person who had adopted Rigel from the Carpathia's crew was called John Brown, Carpathia's Master at Arms, while "Brigg" was the name of a passenger from one of the lifeboats. According to this, John Brown took the dog with him home to Scotland, when he retired, soon after the incident, and where the dog lived to an old age, at John Brown's rural home.[12]
Notes and references
Citations
- ↑ "The Newfoundland Aboard The Titanic". www.brightstarnewfs.com.
- ↑ "The Sinking of the Titanic and Great Sea Disasters". books.google.se. Retrieved 2015.
- ↑ "The-Legend-Of-Rigel-Titanic". www.amazon.com. Retrieved 2015.
- ↑ "the-heroic-dog-the-titanic". www.psychologytoday.com. Retrieved 2015.
- ↑ Brush 2007, p. 177.
- 1 2 Steele 2007, p. 22.
- 1 2 Marshall 2008, p. 60.
- ↑ "Hero dog". Titanic-titanic.com. Retrieved 2013-09-19.
- ↑ [10]"Hero dog". Titanic-titanic.com. Retrieved 2013-09-19.
- 1 2 Matthews 2011, p. 324.
- ↑ Maltin & Aston 2011, p. 176.
- ↑ "Murdochs_herioc_dog_Rigel". www.williammurdoch.net. Retrieved 2015.
Sources
- Bush, Karen (2007). Why Do Dogs. 477. Chase Their Tails But Always Know Th. New Holland Publishers. p. 177. ISBN 978-1-84537-954-4. Retrieved 2013-01-28.
- Maltin, Tim; Aston, Eloise (November 29, 2011). 101 Things You Thought You Knew About the Titanic . . . butDidn't!. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-101-55893-5. Retrieved 2013-01-28.
- Marshall, Logan (August 2008). Sinking of the Titanic and Great Sea Disasters – As Told by First Hand Account of Survivors and Initial Investigations. Arc Manor LLC. ISBN 978-1-60450-281-7. Retrieved 2013-01-28.
- Matthews, Rupert (March 1, 2011). Titanic. Arcturus Publishing. p. 324. ISBN 978-1-84837-763-9. Retrieved 2013-01-28.
- Steele, Randy (March 2007). "Ruff and Ready". Boating. ISSN 0006-5374. Retrieved 2013-01-28.
Further reading
- Jamesson, Christine; Sweet, Lisa (December 30, 2005). The Legend of Rigel: Hero Dog of the Titanic. AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4208-8679-5. Retrieved 2013-01-28.