Argentina & The Titanic

Given that 1912 was the beginning of the heyday of Argentine wealth ...I began to wonder if any of the victims of the Titanic's sinking were Argentine.

Of course, the route was Southhampton UK to NYC ...but with all the richness of Argentina already beginning to make itself present in the world, I wondered if there weren´t a few Argentine passengers that fateful night.

According to Encyclopedia-Titanica, there were seven passengers who called Argentina home, all of whom perished in the sinking: four general laborers, a student, a businessman, and the son of a Danish tenant farmer.

Ahmed and William Ali, both in their mid-twenties, boarded with 3rd class tickets. William´s body was recovered.

Adola Asim and Ali Assam both boarded with 3rd class tickets and their bodies were never identified.

Hans Givard, 30, emigrated to the new world from Denmark in his youth but couldn´t stand the summers here. He was on his way to San Francisco via NYC in 2nd class. He couldn´t bear to say goodbye to his mother and his family didn´t know he was even on the Titanic until after the disaster. He was found with $55 USD, and 8 British pounds, and a silver watch that a relative threw away after not being able to get it to work again.

Ramon Artagaveytia, 71, was a businessman in 1st class who had survived the the fiery wreck of the S.S. America 30 years before. He wrote his brother that he had finally gotten over the nightmares of that disaster and was looking forward to the Titanic voyage. He was confident that modern technology would make it a safe trip. His body was found with a not insignificant amount of gold and currency.

Edgar Andrew, 17, was born in Córdoba the son of English parents and had been studying in England. He was traveling to his brother´s wedding in Trenton NJ when a coal strike bumped him from the S.S. Oceanic. Instead, he bought a 2nd class ticket on the Titanic. A week before leaving, he wrote a friend,

"I am boarding the greatest steamship in the world, but I don't really feel proud of it at all, right now I wish the 'Titanic' were lying at the bottom of the ocean. "

His body, if recovered, was never identified. In April 2001 RMS Titanic Inc., salvors in possession of the Titanic wrecksite, claimed to have found a suitcase belonging to Edgar Andrew and were restoring its contents.