PAYETTE, Idaho — The Titanic sank in the North Atlantic in 1912, and over 1,500 individuals perished in the tragic shipwreck.
One family on board was ultimately bound for Payette, Idaho. There, the Collyer clan hoped to find clean air for their daughter, who regularly suffered from respiratory illnesses that were common amongst the industrial landscape of post-Victorian England.
Mark Lach is a Titanic explorer who has traveled to the depths of the North Atlantic to research the shipwreck and tell stories of those who perished and survived.
Speaking to Senior Reporter Don Nelson about a recent adventure to the bottom of the sea to see the legendary ship, Lach recounted, "So, I'm seeing the sand, and my eyes are following it because it's lit up now— my eyes go out and out, I'm telling you, Don, from here to the back wall of the studio. 40 feet away, maybe, there was the bow of the Titanic; he put us down right in front of the bow."
Find out how one family aboard the Titanic made it to Payette
Lach brought the Titanic and its many stories to life as the Creative Producer for "Titanic the Exhibition" in Salt Lake City.
"This one is the largest I've ever done. 20,000 square feet, a very theatrical exhibition."
Every visitor gets a replica boarding pass with the name of a real Titanic passenger.
"There's a passenger's name, and this happens to be Marjorie Collyer's name, and she's an eight-year-old," said Lach. "So, Charlotte and Harvey had their daughter, Marjorie, with them. You notice on this, we don't talk about their fate."
Turns out, some friends of the Collyer family had immigrated earlier to Payette, Idaho.
"They traveled in second class, so you'll see the second-class objects and the second-class cabin," added Lach, using a boarding card to show the Collyers' lodging reservations onboard.
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Ultimately, the father died in the catastrophe, but the mother and daughter survived and continued to Payette.
I headed to the Payette County Museum to learn more about the Collyers.
Bob Minks, a volunteer at the Payette County Museum, offered some additional details as to what became of the Collyers.
"The original destination was to meet here in Payette with people they knew and buy a half interest in a fruit farm north of town out here," said Minks. "They came here and found the land they were talking about was yet to be developed for the most part, it was basically bare ground, no house, no home or anything else." Minks concluded that the family eventually returned to England.
Charlotte died a few years later, and Marjorie passed away in the 1960s.
Asked if James Cameron's feature film, Titanic, was accurate in its portrayal of the ship and subsequent tragedy, Lach replied. "Amazingly accurate in so many things."
The Titanic Exhibition runs through April in Salt Lake City.
