Titanic: A Snippet of St. George’s Heritage

By Sarah Keeshan

Tragedy struck on April 14, 1912 when the Titanic sank on her maiden voyage from Portsmouth to New York.  Ships from Halifax were critical in the recovery efforts of the weeks following the disaster. 

That Sunday St George’s welcomed a guest preacher: the Reverend A C Crossfield.  Crossfield had stopped in Halifax on his way from England to New York City.  His adopted son had arranged to meet him there, but he was tragically lost on the Titanic.

W G S deCarteret, the captain of the SS Minia, one of the vessels that aided in the recovery, was a parishioner of St George’s and requested that Cunningham accompany the crew as the ship’s chaplain.  Cunningham performed burials at sea, ministered to the crew, and conducted services over the open ocean.  A deck chair from the Titanic was given to Cunningham for his efforts.  Neither he nor deCarteret spoke openly about their difficult and gruesome work over those weeks.

The year 1914 would also prove to be a trying one for the parish.  On January 30, an electrical mishap caused $1800 worth of fire damage to the new addition in the hall.  Luckily, the insurance was sufficient to cover the cost of renovation – the Young Men’s Association had even insured their billiard table!

When war broke out in August, Cunningham was hastily called back from his vacation in Newfoundland.  He proceeded tirelessly to minister to the soldiers and their families throughout the city and environs.  Ninety-two men at St George’s volunteered for service and thirteen were killed in action.  The priest visited military hospitals, barracks, forts, and the military prison at Melville Island.  The hall was converted into a recreational space for the soldiers of the Twenty-fifth Regiment.