JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - December 19 is the 20th anniversary of the hit movie, "Titanic." From the forbidden love to the infamous scene where Jack sacrifices himself for Rose; two decades later our hearts still go on. But few people know that here in Jacksonville's Evergreen Cemetery there are five markers connected to the real-life historic disaster.
Two sites, a cenotaph and a grave marker, are dedicated to Reverend Robert Bateman, who perished with more than 1,500 others on board the doomed ship. Amelia Isaac and Louis Garrett, who were children at the time, survived the sinking and are also buried in the cemetery. Finally, an angel statue stands at the Coleman family grave site; it is a replacement of the original statue, which sank with the Titanic.
Rick Swanson, funeral director and sales manager at Evergreen Cemetery, showed First Coast News an archive of article and documents connecting the cemetery to the Titanic. Among them was a short book, authored by Mike Mulhern, which detailed the lives of the three passengers buried at Evergreen.
According to the book, Reverend Bateman was born in England and ultimately settled in Jacksonville in 1907. During his time on the First Coast, Bateman worked with First Baptist Church to establish Central City Mission to serve those in need.
In Spring 1912, Bateman returned to England for several reasons, one of which was to escort his sister-in-law back to the United States. According to the book, the two were originally set to sail on a different ship, but took the opportunity to sail on the Titanic, instead.
While it’s impossible to know for certain what happened the fateful night the luxury liner struck an iceberg, various accounts say Bateman loaded his sister-in-law into a lifeboat and handed her his scarf or handkerchief, saying the two would meet in heaven if he did not make it off the ship.
The sister-in-law survived.
Stories also say Bateman directed the band on the ship to play “Nearer My God, To Thee,” which is seen in the hit movie.
According to the informational book in the cemetery’s archives, Isaac and Garrett were brother and sister, born in Lebanon when it was still part of Syria. Their family members had slowly been migrating to the US beginning in 1904. Their father was set to travel with them on the Titanic, but he was not permitted to board due to an eye infection.
According to Louis’ account of his escape from the ship, documented in the book, a man he later identified as the wealthy John Jacob Astor plucked him from the crowd and put him in a lifeboat, followed by his sister.
Accounts said both siblings chose to celebrate their birthdays on April 15, the anniversary of the sinking.
Swanson said the angel statue’s connection to the Titanic was discovered accidentally. He said family members had come to clean the statue but eventually decided on the cemetery cleaning it instead.
Swanson said the family once had insurance documents from the White Star Line vowing to replace the original statue.
“As I was writing up the contract, the granddaughter said that that’s not the first angel,” Swanson said. “And I kind of…what are you talking about? And she said ‘That’s the second angel. The first angel was on board the Titanic when it sunk.’”
The replacement remains in Evergreen Cemetery.