Excited to have my sister, Charlotte Zureick, debut a new series today about brushes with death and some mysterious episodes of violence involving an early 20th century wealthy couple, the Beaches. This is Part 1 of her series, A woman around whom death lingered, which she’ll be sharing here on The Silent Sod. -SZB
Last month, in honor of the April 15th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, I made an effort to read newspaper articles from corresponding dates in 1912 in order to see first hand accounts of the Titanic disaster and the events leading up to it. In doing so, I came across an article that told a story of Mr. and Mrs. Frederick O. Beach, in which the Titanic made a brief appearance. What began as a description of a dramatic close call led to a chronicle of sensational events and a fascinating narrative of the characters involved. These combined elements placed a magnifying lens on some of the societal forces of the time. Over the next month, I will share with you in four parts the story about a woman around whom death lingered.
Part One: A Close Call
The date was Monday April 8, 1912. The circumstances that would lead to one of the most well known disasters of humankind, the sinking of the Titanic, were starting to unfold. A well to do couple, Mr. and Mrs. Frederick O. Beach, had arrived in London by a boat train the previous evening after a voyage from New York on the Cunard liner, the Mauretania.
In London, the Beaches learned that a warrant had been issued for the apprehension of Mr. Beach on the charge of assaulting his wife, Mrs. Beach, on the night of February 26, 1912 in Aiken, South Carolina.
The Beaches were part of the Aiken Winter Colony, a popular destination for well to do families from the Northeastern United States where they could enjoy the mild, sunny weather. The colony included large houses and cottages and the residents enjoyed activities such as golf, tennis, polo, fox hunting, and horse racing.
In a description of the Beach couple from May 11, 1912, it was reported that when in the North they made their home in Hewlett, New York. During the summer months, they were prominent members of the “horsey” set of society in the Aiken Winter Colony. Mr. Beach was described as a daring driver of the hounds. His handsome face earned him the nickname Beauty Beach. Mrs. Beach was described as a noted equestrienne, and though she was still under thirty-five, looked ten years younger.
The departure of the Beaches to England on the ocean liner Mauretania from New York was described as hasty. They were said to board the ship at the very last minute and were reported as being apparently on the best of terms. They were known to be going to Europe as the guests of Mr. and Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt. There is mention that the case took on a mysterious nature when the Beaches sailed for England on the Mauretania together.
On learning of the warrant in London, Mr. Beach began to make plans to return to the United States immediately. He made inquiries into the earliest and quickest steamer he could catch to journey back to the United States. What voyage would fit this description on that fateful week? The Titanic, which would begin her maiden voyage from Southampton on Wednesday April 10, 1912.
Beach began the process of reserving accommodations for himself and his wife, but suddenly these plans were abandoned as he decided to first make a trip to the American embassy in London and then travel to Paris where he consulted with his close friend who had been the best man in his wedding, William K. Vanderbilt.
Though Mr. Beach was dealing with being accused of a near deadly assault on his wife and the impending voyage back to America, in the coming days, it would come to light that the couple had avoided a potentially deadly turn in this tale when he decided to abandon his plan of booking their voyage on the Titanic.
When I happened across this story, one of my first thoughts went to the well known richest passengers on the Titanic, John Jacob Astor IV and his wife Madeleine Astor. So often it is noted in accounts of the Titanic that there was much gossip about the couple among the first class due to the divorce of Mr. Astor from his first wife and subsequent marriage to his much younger bride. I thought to myself that if the Beaches had made their bookings on the Titanic, Mr. Astor might not have not had to deal with so much of the limelight in comparison to the Beaches, whose scandal was making daily headlines. Mr. Astor perished in the sinking of the Titanic while his pregnant wife was saved.
The Beach’s story also makes me think of people who changed their flight plans on 9/11. I can think of two times in my life where I had a close call. One was many years ago during a trip to Chicago. My aunt and I were walking near an area where scaffolding fell from a skyscraper and killed pedestrians only a few minutes from around the time we would have been in the same area. Another time, I had parked my car in front of my parents’ house after work. I usually stayed in the car for a few minutes listening to music before going into the house. Something that night made me get out of the car right away, and within a couple minutes, I heard a loud boom which turned out to be a car ramming into the driver’s side of my parked car, which was completely totaled.
Have you ever had a close call like this?
In part two of the Beach story, we will take a closer look at the alleged assault of Mrs. Beach.
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