Wallace Hartley, Titanic bandmaster:

Details

Wallace Hartley, Titanic bandmaster:
an autographed Christmas card with floral front highlighted with glitter and inscribed Rememberance, foliate cut borders, opening with message reading "There's gladness in rememberance" With all good wishes for a happy Christmas From Wallace H. Hartley, the card now glued into a page of an autograph book with note reading BAND-MASTER ON THE TITANIC - WHO PLAYED "NEARER MY GOD TO THEE" AS THE SHIP WENT DOWN., the remainder of the album used mainly by convalescing First World War soldiers with poetry, artwork and cartoons, together with a second album of similar content, the larger 8 x 6½in. (20.3 x 16.5cm.)
See illustration (2)

Provenance

Gladys Williams and thence by descent

Lot Essay

These books belonged to a Red Cross nurse called Gladys Williams who lived in Didsbury, Manchester and she is believed to have started her autograph album from 1905. During the First World War she worked at the 1st Southern General Hospital in Birmingham. At some point between 1905 and 1911 she is thought to have tended Wallace Hartley who remembered her in this undated Christmas card.

Wallace Hartley secured the admiration of the World for leading the band of R.M.S. Titanic in an attempt to calm pasengers as she sank. By tradition the last music played was Nearer My God To Thee although this has been under constant debate ever since. None of the band survived the disaster.

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