A locket was among personal items found in a suitcase belonging to a Titanic passenger who was part of a love story every bit as tragic as the one from the blockbuster movie.
James Cameron’s “Titanic” movie popularized the story of a lost necklace and a lost love, but one of the real stories told by artifacts found on the ship is just as tragic, if not more so.
In memory of the ship’s sinking on its maiden voyage on April 15, 1912, a locket, gambling chips, and a cuff link are some of the items that will be on display at The Artifact Exhibition at the Luxor Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, for a limited time, USA Today reported.
The items belonged to Virginia Estelle McDowell Clark and her husband Walter Miller Clark, who were first class passengers on the Titanic. The Clarks were traveling in Europe on a belated honeymoon when they decided to take a trip on the Titanic so they could come home sooner to be with their 2-year-old son on his birthday, Vice President of Premier Exhibitions Alexandra Klingelhofer told USA Today.
When Virginia felt the iceberg hit the massive ship, she reportedly went and told her husband Walter that she thought something was wrong. Even though she interrupted his poker game, Walter went with her and ended up helping her into a lifeboat, USA Today said. The boat was supposed to come back for him but ended up being fully lowered to the water even though it wasn’t full.
Virginia made it to safety, but Walter did not.
As Titanic items were found and catalogued, the locket had the initials V.C. on it, leading researchers to deduce that the suitcase had belonged to the Clarks.
More than 1,500 people died when the Titanic crashed into an iceberg and sank hours later. The 10th anniversary of the ship's sinking is this week.
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