Alistair Laird
Department Director
Lot 8
A crew suitcase, RMS Titanic 22x14x8ins.(56x36x20cm) 8
13 September 2011, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond StreetSold for £2,000 inc. premium
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A crew suitcase, RMS Titanic
Originally the property of Walter Ennis, Turkish Baths Steward. Brown leather, with reinforced corners, brass buckles and leather straps. The interior lined in blue fabric, with a secure pocket in the lid, and side pockets. Also with a circular leather shirt collar case. Marked on the side in red "108" and bearing the initials "W E" on the lid. Together with copies of the Daily Mirror dated April 16th, 17th, 18th,19th, 20th and 22nd. 22x14x8ins.(56x36x20cm) (8)
Footnotes
Provenance:
The family of Samuel Kyle, a French polisher from Belfast, and thence by descent.
Kyle was working on the ship up to and including her delivery voyage to Southampton. Bowing to pressure from his family, he declined to make the trip to New York, despite having relatives in the US. Leaving the ship, he was given the suitcase by Walter Ellis for safekeeping, possibly because he had too little space, with the intention of collecting it later on his return. Kyle acquired souvenir copies of the Daily Mirror after the disaster.
Walter Ennis was making his first voyage, having previously worked at Smedley Hydro in Stockport. He was married, with two children aged 13 and 5 years of age and the family resided in Birkdale. Aged 35 at the time of the disaster, Ennis did not survive the sinking and his body was never identified.