​Robertha Josephine Watt: A True Survivor
Why is it that often the most thrilling stories are the most overlooked? Of the multitudes of Titanic books and websites I have perused over the years, very few have contained mention and none have contained so much as a photograph of my favorite child survivor of the Titanic - Robertha Watt, a 12-year old Scottish girl who not only came through the disaster, but left behind her a thrilling account, battled the shock that the tragedy left her with, led a vigorous, healthy and happy family life, and lived to a ripe old age. Here is her story.
The life of Miss Robertha Josephine Watt, known to friends and family as 'Bertha,' began on September 11th 1899, her birthdate ironically foreshadowing that of a recent American tragedy with loss of life even greater than the one she would come to survive. She and her mother, Elizabeth 'Bessie,' resided in Edinburg, Scotland, where their life was dominated by devotion to the Congregational Church and long, pleasant boat rides on the waters of Loch Ness. Like so many European citizens of the time, Robertha's architect father left Scotland for America to follow the age-old dream of bringing family members to the 'New World,' and in April of 1912, his wife and daughter travelled to Southampton to board a ship and join him. Again like many others, the Watts were originally booked on the New York, but due to a coal shortage, they were transferred to the Titanic. The Watts travelled second-class.​

In a 1950's letter to Walter Lord, author of the famous Titanic-related book A Night to Remember, Robertha recalls a strange incident which occured the afternoon she and her mother boarded the liner:
"A queer little incident happened that afternoon. I remember Mother and some ladies having some tea, and as sometimes happened in those days, one of them read the teacups. Can't remember the lady's name, but in one cup she said, 'I can't see anything; it's like there's a black wall and nothing beyond.' Quite a good prediction for so many.
Already, Robertha's young life is marked by warnings of what is to come. From her birthdate to her fondness of rowing in a small boat through wide black waters to the identity of the ship in which she was originally booked-New York- the same steamer which later nearly collided with and pierced the bow of the Titanic, as if in some dramatic act of revenge for taking away so many of its passengers - many aspects of her life seemed to foreshadow an event which left scars that she, unlike so many others, managed to heal through time. Also, her death, 4th of March 1993, coincide almost to the day of the first event in New York on the 26th of February 1993...

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